Sleeping With the Enemy
by PeanutButter123
Summary: Helga Pataki is all grown up and has the perfect job and apartment in the city, but everything is turned upside down when an old friend has been mysteriously pushed off a 12 story roof and murdered. Helga G Pataki dives into finding out the mystery behind the murder. Is she willing to lose everything to uncover the secret, including her growing relationship with Arnold?
1. I Was Not Magnificent

**AN: New Hey Arnold story. Warning this an AU and is a more dark and gritty take on Hey Arnold. This story is co-written by me and misssocrates. Neither of us own Hey Arnold; we're writing for fun.**

 **I Was Not Magnificent**

Time: 9:22 PM. A New York street and the smell of debauchery and fresh blood filled the air. Helga Pataki was standing behind the yellow tape hardly phased by the situation. The police were there pushing people back from the scene. Everything to Helga moved in slow motion as she eyed the pavement of the sidewalk, now tinted crimson red.

She exhaled slowly, watching her breath in the air. It was way too cold to deal with this. Cameras and news reporters began to appear, camera flashes and yelling voices followed.

"Any idea who would do this?" a shrill voice asked. She recognized it was coming from behind her.

Phoebe Heyerdahl stood behind her. Her blue pea coat and black leggings proved themselves distinguishable, even in the large crowd starting form. Phoebe had been working as a secretary for a big name law firm. Funny, a woman that types for a living can't even respond to a text until situations happen like this.

"Not sure Phoebs." Helga replied nearly whispering. But she was going to find out, she thought.

Time: 9:31. A crying mother throw herself to the ground in front of them. The emotion of sorrow filled the air. The smell of L'interdit by Givenchy hit Helga's nose. Expensive perfume for a second hand woman. They were watching that same woman break at her seams.

Helga faded back into the crowd, her blonde hair tousled by the dry winter air. The Givenchy fragrance hit Helga's nose again. Smelled like the flowers you would put on a casket. A socialite was dead.

~/~

Helga returned to her shitty apartment with the draft from the window. She took off her tan trench coat and leather gloves. She brushed her hair back with her fingers. It was tangled from blowing in the wind. She sat down at her couch and began to read today's paper she got from work today.

The headline read: **Socialite to Marry CEO of Famous Research Company.** She eyes the picture of the beautiful young woman standing next to her husband. The pearls wrapped around her neck and the tight bright pink body con dress cost more than a year's worth of Helga's rent. She was smiling hard while her fiancé in his grey business suit kissed her check. It was all so forced, she thought. The day she announces her marriage she gets pushed from the 12th story of a building. Her pretty face was plastered all over the pavement, just like it was plastered all over newspapers.

The door opens and Helga looks up. It was her roommate, Arnold Shortman coming in from work. He was an intern at the newspaper and he worked nights bar backing at a local night club. Arnold smelled like alcohol and sweat every night. He unbuttoned the first two buttons on his white shirt and jumps as he notices Helga sitting there.

"You're home early. Thought you would be working on that medical handbook tonight?" Arnold sat down next to her. Helga was a technical writer for a pharmaceutical company. Yes, she wrote the little warning label on your pill bottles, which was anything but inspiring for her.

"Yeah, decided to leave early. Writer's block." Helga proclaimed, placing the newspaper face down on her lap so he wouldn't see.

"How hard is it to write Warning: May Cause Drowsiness?" Arnold laughed. Truth is she hated living with him sometimes. They weren't together. Just roommates until one person got a better job. Arnold was nice and paid the rent on time so she couldn't complain about that. What she could be upset with is the fact that neither of them had been on decent date since they moved in together. They both worked hard to make ends meet. Frankly she was horny and frustrated, but Arnold never seemed to notice.

"Shut up Football Head! I'm sure you had a fun time serving whores their daily tranquilizer." Helga retorted almost hitting him after the comment.

Arnold walked to his room, probably to shower and change from tonight's workload. Once he left the room Helga looked at the picture again. She was perfect. Her bangs were perfect, her 7 inch waist was perfect, her makeup was perfect, but something was off. The caption under the picture was: **Socialite and New Fiancé Share an Intimate Moment at their Estate**.

The way he wrapped his hand around her waist. It was too tense, too tight, and almost possessive. Of course any man is possessive about their lover, but he just wasn't the possessive type to begin with. He was hiding something.

~/~

Time: 12:32. Helga was still awake, staring at the ceiling in her bed. How could a girl that young and lively be reduced to a corpse? She thought of times where she was mean to her and felt sick. She picked her phone up from the nightstand and began reading her texts. 3 unread messages:

 **Boss Man: Please finish the medical journal by 1pm tomorrow Helga. Sent 7:21pm**

 **Olga: Hey sis. How are you? Just checking on you. Sent 8:13pm**

 **Phoebe: Breakfast tomorrow? Sorry I haven't been texting back. Just so busy. Catch up tomorrow if you come to breakfast. Sent 9:20pm**

The timestamp on the message was 2 minutes before it happened. 2 minutes too late.

"Fuck." Helga blurted out.

She heard dishes from the kitchen and decided to get up and talk to Arnold. He was heating up a Hot Pocket in the microwave.

"Thought you'd be sleeping." Arnold said as he placed his Hot Pocket in the microwave.

2 minutes on the microwave timer. 1:45 seconds of silence before Helga spoke.

"A-Arnold." Her voice was shaky. Arnold looked at her with concerned eyes, anticipating what she had to say. "Rhonda Whellington Lloyd is dead."

The timer went off.

A socialite was dead.

The night was dark and full of secrets.

 **AN: Interested in what happens next? Read more and find out. This chapter was written by Brie (peanutbutter123). Misssocrates and I will be alternating chapters from here on out. Please review. ~Brie**


	2. Horowitz Incorporated

**Horowitz Incorporated**

Eugene Horowitz sat nervously twitching at his desk. Being nervous was something unusual for Eugene, anxiety was something he had experienced as a child, but not for many years since. He had thought he put his childhood and past behind him. He was 24 now and the CEO of a Fortune 500 multi-million dollar company. He was successful and rich beyond anyone's wildest dreams. He played golf with the mayor and other powerful friends, the elite of Hillwood. He had an entire staff and set of employees that he could order around, who cowered in fear when he walked past their desks. But right now it he was, old Eugene, who was cowering at his desk, his hands trembling as he bit nervously at his pen.

Reporters and police officers were banging at the door to his gold and glass penthouse office, shouting for him to come out.

"Mr. Horowitz! Mr. Horowitz! Could we please speak to you?"

"There's been an accident, with your fiancee Rhonda!"

The voices were loud and demanding, as if they didn't give a damn they were talking to a CEO.

"Mr. Horowitz, it's the FBI! We need to talk to you."

"We only need to ask a few questions!"

Sweat accumulated at his brow. He knew what had happened.

Rhonda was dead. How could he not know, it was all over the news. Of course he was the main suspect.

He bit at his lip nervously, threatening to make it bleed.

Finally he reached out his hand to the phone on his desk and pressed the number 1 button on his speed dial.

It ringed for only a short moment before his personal assistant, Lila Sawyer, picked it up.

"Lila," he breathed into the phone, "I need you get me out of here!"

He heard Lila's soft voice respond to him, with utter loyalty and dependability, "Of course Mr. Horowitz. I have already contacted your lawyers and we have a limo waiting for you on the ground floor. Just tell me when you're ready to leave, sir."

Eugene exhaled in relief before standing up and getting his briefcase. He was the main suspect in the murder of Hillside's most prominent socialite. He never imagined this happening in a thousand years.

~/~

Arnold looked in shock at Helga. He couldn't believe what she'd just said.

"Helga, what did you just say?"

Helga took a deep breath, but her voice was still shaky as she answered him, "Rhonda's dead."

That's what he thought he heard but he couldn't believe it. His chest grew heavy and his heart skipped a beat. Back at PS 118 Rhonda was the most popular girl in school. She grew up to be the most popular woman in Hillwood, but now she was… dead.

He led Helga by the hand to the sofa and sat her down, before sitting down next to her. Arnold could tell Helga was on the point of crying.

Instinctively he reached out to grab her hand but she pulled her hand away.

"I'm alright Arnold!" she spat.

Arnold knew better than to argue with her.

"O-kay... Just tell me what happened." he pleaded softly.

"I was walking home from work when I saw a big crowd of people and the police outside of the Gates Hotel. I stepped closer to see what was happening and there was..was R-rhonda...on the pavement... with her head cracked wide open like a splashed watermelon."

Helga began to sob. The tears ran down her face in heavy, salty globs, "She was still beautiful. Even when she was lifeless."

Arnold felt a wave of nausea overtake him.

"How could this happen...Rhonda was so young, she was about to be married; they just announce the engagement today. Who would do something like this?! It's sick!"

"I don't know Arnold. I don't know." she whispered softly. Her eyes were puffy and red.

Arnold hated seeing Helga upset. In all of the time they had lived together, he only saw her cry once and that was because her mom started drinking again. Helga Pataki, in all the time he knew her, was as strong as steel...but this crying young woman before him was almost delicate. Almost as delicate as the pink bow she used to tie back her long blonde hair into a ponytail...he was secretly glad that she still wore her bow and that some things about her never changed. Unconsciously, he felt a need to wrap his arms around her and comfort her as if she were a little child again.

Helga fell on Arnold's shoulder and began to cry. The intimate gesture made him tense up.

As he stroked her blonde hair and wiped away her tears he couldn't help but feel more sorry for Helga than his dead past friend.

"Helga," he stammered, "I know she was your friend but I don't want you getting so upset by this, there's nothing we really can do now. We're just going to have to trust the Hillwood police to get justice for Rhonda."

He hated himself for saying this. He only wished he could do more. He hated being unable to do anything while Rhonda's killer still roamed on the streets of Hillwood where they get another victim. But he was a news reporter not a detective….he couldn't do everything could he? He couldn't save the world all the time, no matter how much he wanted to. If only he had some answers….

~/~

Eugene Horowitz was in the back of his limo with his assistant Lila. He loosened his tie, to tense to maintain his normal confidence.

"I didn't kill my fiancee Lila." Eugene said abruptly. He rolled down the window to allow himself to get some air. He was almost hyperventilating and frantically searched his limo for a paper bag in case he had to vomit.

"I would never think you would be capable of something ever so horrific." Lila smiled. Smiling was hardly the reaction to the situation Eugene needed, but then again Lila always seemed to be smiling, like she was floating through life.

How could they think I killed her? How do I get myself out of this mess?

"Don't worry, Mr. Horowitz," Lila said sweetly and checked out her mobile phone which was brimming with texts from the media and police asking for Eugene, "We'll find a way out of this. You're only one of the most important people in Hillwood and friends with the mayor. And you have the most powerful lawyers behind you."

"Where are we going Lila?" Eugene asked. "Thanks for getting me out of the office today by the way. I couldn't face them all right now."

"No problem, Eugene, I would do anything for you. You know that, right? This is more than just a job for me." she patted his knee. Eugene glared uncomfortably between Lila and her hand on his knee. What exactly was she playing at?

Suddenly the limo came to an abrupt halt, tossing them all forward.

"What was that?" Lila exclaimed as she fell out of her seat, she hadn't been wearing a seatbelt.

The chauffeur answered them through the intercom, "There's some police officers up ahead that are making a road block and checking all the cars."

Lila grimaced, "Then drive around them!" she shouted into the intercom speakers, "What do you think we're paying you for?!"

The limo driver nodded before taking an illegal U-turn to get them out of the road block.

 _I didn't kill her. I didn't kill her,_ Eugene kept thinking to himself. _Even if he didn't kill her that didn't matter. All of Hillwood thought he did._


	3. I Write Sins, Not Vanity

**Author's Note: New chapter written for you guys. Hope you enjoy it! We appreciate you all reading and discovering the mystery with us. Constructive criticism would be greatly appreciated. We want this story to be the best it can be for the readers. Thanks again for coming back. ~Brie**

 **Chapter 3: I Write Sins, Not Vanity**

Detective Harold Berman shook his head. When he had been awoken today at 7 am and put on his work boots and blue badge, he hadn't been expecting the mess he'd be walking into today.

It was one of the worst crimes he had ever seen, and it was made even more grisly by the fact that it was Rhonda, his childhood friend, who had been murdered.

Some psychopath had decided to throw Rhonda Wellington Lloyd, soon to be Rhonda Horowitz, off the 12th floor of the Gates hotel. Poor Rhonda had plummeted 12 floors down to an agonizing death. It was such a waste of life. Rhonda had always been a high achiever and her death was an unexpected end to her glamorous unfinished life.

Harold moved around the crime scene, pushing back the onlookers who threatened to spill past the yellow police tape around the spot in the pavement where a dead Rhonda lay. Every single bone in her body had smashed, including her skull, so that some of her brains leaked out in a nauseating pink puddle. Only her face was still in one piece. Her face was as beautiful as ever and it made even the eyes of a hardened detective like Harold water.

Rhonda's beautiful lifeless face stared upwards to the sky and to the towering Gates Hotel building, as if to accuse her killer from beyond the grave with her beautiful open eyes.

Officer Sid pulled up in his car. He was Harold's partner. They had both entered the police academy together as young rookies and stuck it out together ever since. Sid got out of the car and walked over to Harold.

"What the hell?" Sid declared. "This a tragedy. I know Rhonda was a bitch but I would never think anyone would be this brutal."

Harold took blood samples and pictures of the crime scene as the coroner's office came to collect the body. The body needed a proper examination to determine cause of death. Harold could see the cause of death just by looking at the corpse. Cause of death: Massive head explosion.

"What was she doing here at this hotel Sid? You ever know Rhonda to do anything that didn't fit into her lavish lifestyle?" Harold asked leaning down to get a close picture of the red sidewalk.

"No, even when we were in elementary school, everything she did was over the top and nauseatingly luxurious." Sid spoke as he collected hair samples from the sidewalk.

"Then what the hell was she doing in this second hand, sleazy hotel?" Harold snapped another picture of the front of the hotel. The flash went off on the brown building with the bright blue awning. The big letters on top of building read: William Gates Motel.

What was Rhonda doing here? And why would they push her from a twelfth floor hotel room? Who ever did this had a statement to make.

The question was who wouldn't want to kill Hillwood's most pinned for woman?

~/~

A sea of reporters and journalists flashed their cameras. Eugene stood in front of the podium at City Hall with his crew of suit wearing lawyers behind. Lila Sawyer stepped up to the podium next to him. She was wearing one of her best red suit-skirts from a major designer label and she knew at least half of the male reporters mouths had opened like dogs to drool over her. The camera loved her and all eyes were on her. Her big, brown eyes locked with Eugene's and she nodded at him. They had both gone over, with the aide of his lawyers, what he should say. So the words that came out of mouth were a carefully contrived speech written down on a piece of paper he held between his sweating hands.

Eugene cleared his throat and did his best to speak in an even tone, despite all the angry glares he was getting and the cameras flashing in his face. "Rhonda Wellington Lloyd was the love of my life. What happened today was the greatest tragedy possible and my heart is broken. We were due to be married in the spring. R-rhonda and I had been happy together for two years and had a beautiful future planned, and she was everything I could've asked for and more. I am devastated and….and appalled by this crime. All of Hillwood will mourn the loss of a woman who had not only a beautiful appearance but a beautiful spirit as well. I trust that Hillwood's police department will launch a full investigation and give justice to my one and only soulmate."

Helga watched the press conference from her computer at work. Looking at Eugene made her sick. The way his hair was slicked back and the amount of starch in his white dress shirt screamed forced. His "soulmate" had just been brutally murdered but he looked like he'd just walked out of a salon.

Helga knew Eugene and he was a nervous wreck since she met him. Eugene couldn't even handle a bug flying in the classroom let alone the murder of his girlfriend. Here on the screen he was composed, masculine, and giving off all the bravado he could in the eye of the reporters. He was definitely hiding more than he let on.

Eugene stepped back from the podium. The district attorney for Hillwood, Olivia Mendez, stepped up to the mic.

"A full scale investigation has been launched and this murderer will be found. Detective Berman and Officer Side of Hillwood City's Police Department are the lead investigators on this case. I assure you that Ms. Lloyd will receive justice. The coroner has ruled out suicide and has determined the cause of death as the massive head trauma she received before she hit the pavement. Yes, Ms. Lloyd was attacked before she was thrown off the building, there was evidence of a struggle. At this time we are investigating the suspects but we respect the rights of our current suspects to remain anonymous until further evidence is uncovered."

There was an eruption of gasps and protests at this. Eugene shifted uncomfortably. But the district attorney continued her speech unphased by the protests.

"Rest assured that we will find the killer. When we do the charges are as followed: First Degree Manslaughter in the case of Ms. Rhonda Wellington Lloyd and Involuntary Manslaughter in the case of Ms. Lloyd's unborn fetus. The maximum sentence being life in prison with no chance of parole. At this time no other details of Ms. Lloyd's murder can be disclosed and I would ask the public to respect the privacy the police need to continue their investigation. Thank you."

Helga clicked back to her word document to finish up the medical journal she was working on. Rhonda was pregnant! Leave it to Rhonda to never leave things conventional. Her pregnancy ended in a homicide, not a new life.

Lucky she changed the tab when she did. Her boss walked into her office asking if the journal was almost done. It was 11:24am. She had another 2 hours before the deadline. She could write this in her sleep. Truth is she hated her job. She was a creative butterfly and burned to write a novel of grand proportions. She cringed at the terrible love poem she used to write about her current roommate, Arnold. To think she was head over heels in love with him and years later they live together in a platonic relationship.

"Almost done boss man. Just putting my finishing touches on the piece." Helga took out her pink ribbon that tied her ponytail, something she often did when she was lying.

"Hey, you heard about that rich girl who fell from that building downtown?" Her boss smirked a bit. "The most action happening in Hillwood in years, don't you think?"

She slammed her fists against the keyboard. He was so insensitive and so clueless. "Her name was Rhonda Wellington Lloyd, you prick and she was a friend!"

"Whoa Helga didn't know. I didn't mean to upset you. Listen, you can take the day off and I'll have someone else finish the journal if you need time off."

Helga gladly accepted the offer. Every second she spent at work was a wasted one.

With her time off she could go visit Hillwood's most hated man: Eugene Horowitz. She needed answers and she wasn't about to wait for the police to get them for her.

~/~

Arnold Shortman couldn't get Helga's tear filled face out of his mind, even when he was at his internship. People were asking for coffee left and right at the Daily Globe. Arnold couldn't get the mugs ready fast enough.

People were running around frantically trying to break the news on Hillside's Dorothy Hale murder as they called it. Rhonda's name was coming from people's mouths, people who never even met her. This was a newspaper, not a gossip magazine. Arnold stayed calm, but some of the things people were saying was making him upset.

"Did you hear about the rich girl Rhonda? I heard she was cheating on her fiance and that's why he killed her."

"I heard she was pregnant by another man."

"I heard she was at the hotel for a secret abortion, but Eugene found out and killed her in a crime of passion."

"She was getting drugs. The only reason you go to that part of downtown is to either get drugs or get a prostitute."

"Yeah that Rhonda probably has been passed around to all the rich men in town. She lucked up and got pregnant. That's the only reason Horowitz would have even considered marrying a women like her."

As he poured his probably 18th cup of coffee for another coworker his boss, Gerald Johanssen entered the kitchen area. He and Gerald had been best friends since elementary school. When Arnold told Gerald he wanted to start a career in journalism Gerald, who happened to be the start reporter at the Daily Globe, got Arnold an internship the next day. Yes, at work Gerald was his boss but he was his best friend first and foremost.

"Hey Arnold." He rolled the sleeves up on his blue button up to reveal his forearms covered with tattoos. "Man, how are you holding up?"

Arnold whispered very low so that no one would overhear them. "People are saying the most horrible things about Rhonda that just aren't true Gerald. The woman is dead and all they're talking about is their own terrible assumptions of her. It isn't right."

"It's messed up man, I know. Rhonda was a friend, but don't get too bothered by what other people say. Between me and you I think this is what Rhonda would have wanted. She would have wanted all the attention on her, even after death."

"Gerald! That-"

Gerald cut him off. Arnold was starting to get a little loud. "Listen. I know it's hard to deal with but I have a job to do. I have to break the story to the entire city, so I'll say what I need to to keep the readers interested. I'll pay my respects to her at the funeral or something when my job isn't on the line. Truth is people don't care about the vanity stories about how good a person she was; they want to know about her sins. I'll worry about how Rhonda is portrayed to the people of Hillwood. You just keep pouring coffee. Alright man?"

Arnold was speechless. His best friend was seriously considering defaming Rhonda's character just for more readers. He should be out trying to write about justice and the truth. He should be helping to find Rhonda's murderer.

What was he saying? It wasn't his or Gerald's job to find justice. That was up to the police, but Arnold was starting to think that the circumstances of this case were a little suspicious himself. On the day she announces her engagement to Eugene she's flung from a building with an unborn child in her belly. Why was she at the hotel? Who was there with her? Did Eugene kill her or was it someone else, someone from the past?

Arnold went back to pouring coffee like Gerald told him to. None of this was his business. What was his business was getting out of this internship on time so he could make it to work at the bar on time tonight. Rent was due soon and Helga would be pissed if he didn't come up with his half.

~/~

All of the old PS 118 crews's phones buzzed at the same time from around the city. Phoebe Heyerdahl, Arnold Shortman, Helga Pataki, Harold Berman, Stinky Peterson, and Sid's phones all received the same message:

 **From: Eugene Horowitz**

 **You are invited to the funeral of Ms. Rhonda Wellington Lloyd on Friday at the Divine Truth Church. Please respond to this message if you are attending. Funeral will start at 1:00pm and her burial will happen shortly after. Rhonda wouldn't want us to be so depressed so let's celebrate her life at my home, the Horowitz estate that same day at 6:00pm. I want this to be a small party with just the PS 118 crew. I think she would've liked that. Rhonda always said this quote and I think it fits: "No one dies without scars. No one dies without a story left to tell." Let's continue to write Rhonda's story together.**

Rhonda certainly had an unfinished story to be told and Helga was going to do anything to find it out. Next stop the Horowitz Estate. Eugene would probably be surprised to see her before Friday but Helga had a mission to achieve.


	4. The Swanky Hamptons

**Chapter 4: The Swanky Hamptons**

Helga Pataki jumped into her car and drove down the Interoute Highway 88 that led to the Swanky Hamptons, Hillwood's most expensive neighbourhood. There was only one person she wanted to talk to now and she needed to get there quick. Although he was just a suspect at this point, Eugene couldn't leave the country without risking arrest yet Helga wouldn't put it past the sly multimillionaire to try to get away from the city to avoid the media/paps ….so she needed to get there before he left.

As she took a few sharp turns on the road, getting some fellow drivers to honk at her, Helga felt her phone ringing. She bit her lip and looked to see who was calling.

It was Phoebe.

"Phoebe. What is it? I'm driving," Helga paused to flip off a driver whom she had cut off, "I'm not supposed to be on the phone right now."

"Helga," Phoebe's voice was soft but full of alarm, "I have to tell you something really important."

"Yeah so what is it?" Helga was starting to lose her patience with Phoebe's evasiveness. "C'mon spit it out before I get a ticket for driving while on the phone...plus speeding and cutting people off."

She was almost worried when Phoebe didn't laugh at her joke.

"Phoebe are you still there?"

There was a pause before her friend answered, "I can't say it over the phone Helga, it's very important. I need to talk to you in person."

Suddenly she heard a click and the line went dead. What the hell?

"Hello?"

Phoebe didn't answer.

Helga looked up at the road in time to barely miss crashing into a telephone pole.

"Criminey!"

Helga's pink car pulled into the driveway of Eugene Horowitz mansion. She was relieved that the paparazzi had not found his gated home yet and she was the only one there besides a few parked vehicles, including a limo and a black, armour plated SUV.

She warily looked at the tree-lined driveway to her former classmate's house. Eugene's mansion was situated in one of the most expensive districts in the whole country, but even by Hampton standards, Eugene's mansion was lavish. it looked like a combination of the White House and the Taj Mahal. Helga was almost put off by how ridiculously over the top the mansion was. Who really needed to live in a house with sixteen rooms and a gold toilet? She was glad neither her or Arnold were like that and they could appreciate their small but cozy apartment.

Helga rolled down her windows and pressed at the button to open the gate to his mansion. She was answered by a high-pitched female voice on the other end.

"Go away! We don't want anyone from the press! If you don't leave right now, we will release the dogs on you and charge you with trespassing!"

Helga's eyes widened in alarm, "Calm down lady, I'm not from the press! I'm Helga Pataki, one of Rhonda's friends. Listen I've known both Eugene and Rhonda forever. Could you just tell him I'm here? I want to talk with him."

Helga waited for a minute. She was surprised when the gates swung open and wasted no time in driving her car down the long driveway to the front of his house. As soon as she reached the front door, she saw both Lila Sawyer and a shorter, older lady, whom she assumed to be a maid, standing there. Helga felt sick to her stomach when she noticed that Lila was dressed to the nines in a sleek red dress like she was going out to a party or something. Did she think she owned his house now because Rhonda died? Who did she think she was. The bitch should be dressed in black and mourning.

"Helga! Whatever are you doing here?" Lila batted her eyelashes at Helga

"I already told you, Princess. I'm here to talk to Eugene. Got it?" Helga stomped into the mansion with her fists balled up at her sides.

"Well I'm sorry. He is just ever so busy with the funeral arrangements." Lila trotted behind her with her 5 inch heels clicking the whole way. "You should just come back at a less emotional time Helga."

"Save it Cupcake." Helga swung the front door open forcefully. " Euuuuugeeeeeeeene!"

Eugene nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw Helga Pataki marching up to him with an angry look on her face.

"Helga? What are you doing here?"

"Save it Eugene, I've got some questions to ask."

Lila was behind her in an instance, "Excuse me Helga but that is no way to treat Eugene, he's only just the CEO of Horowitz Incorporated, one of the most important-"

Helga cut Lila off and pointed her finger at Eugene, "Eugene, you and me. Let's talk right now," she searched the house for a place they could speak privately, "In that room there."

"B-but but Helga.." Eugene sputtered like a nervous idiot but Helga just grabbed him by the collar and dragged him into the room, shutting the door in the faces of Lila and the maid who were screaming their heads off at her and threatening to call the police.

"Now you're going to listen to me Eugene," Helga narrowed her eyes. She couldn't believe this wimp ever grew up to be the CEO of anything.

Lila banged her fists against the closed door, "Helga open this door right now! Eugene are you alright?! She can't treat you this way!"

"Shut it Lila!" Helga shot back.

Eugene seemed terrified of Helga but managed to say "Lila's right, you can't treat me like this Helga! You're no longer the bully of PS 118, you can't just push people around! In fact I could have you arrested for barging in on me, on my private property!"

"Answer me just this one question: did you or didn't you kill MY friend Rhonda Wellington Lloyd?"

Eugene's face twitched in a nervous tic before speaking, "Helga how can you think I could possibly do that?! I loved Rhonda! I swear I wouldn't have done anything to hurt her!"

Helga wasn't sure whether to believe him or not. He was such a quivering cowardly pile of cow manure. Did this wimp really have the guts to murder someone? It seemed unlikely.

Lila banged on the door again, "Helga, I've just called the police. You have exactly 6 minutes to get out of here before I send you to prison for assault!"

Helga grabbed Eugene by the collar again, "One last question Eugene. Did you know?"

"K-know what?" he stammered, sweat gathering at his brow.

"Did you know Rhonda was pregnant, before the coroner's report came out?"

"No, no Helga I had no idea." Eugene's eyes were glassy like he was about to cry. "Listen I loved Rhonda, but she was troubled. She had some demons she just couldn't escape."

Helga quirked her eyebrow, "What do you mean?"

Before Eugene could answer her question, Lila finally managed to open the door and she had a venomous glint in her eyes as she glared between Eugene and Helga.

"I'm ever so sorry but it is time for you to LEAVE Helga. You have terrified Eugene enough. Unless you want to be arrested I suggest you leave before the police gets here."

Helga shoved passed Lila and exited the room. Whatever dark secrets Rhonda had, Helga wanted to find out about.

"Fine, I'm going." she crossed her arms, "There's no need to call the authorities, it's not like _I_ killed anyone!" she shot Eugene a dirty look and Eugene cowered back from her in fear, "I'll see you two at the funeral. To pay my respects to Rhonda. I'm not going to see you two!"

Helga gave one last disgusted glance at Lila's skin-tight red dress before turning to leave. She knew Lila had always been a goody-two-shoes growing up, so compensated by dressing as slutty as possible now. Still someone needed to tell Miss Sawyer to put it away for pity's sake and dress appropriately when Rhonda died barely a day ago.

If Lila showed up at Rhonda's funeral wearing anything red or ridiculous, Helga swore to god she would give the goody-goody hypocrite a piece of her mind.

Helga slammed the door to the Horowitz mansion behind her and got into her car. She speedily zoomed down the Swanky Hamptons streets racing to get back to the city and her apartment where Arnold no doubt would be waiting for her. Although they were only roommates, Arnold had the annoying habit of worrying about her and doing stupid things like insisting they have supper together every night. Tonight was supposed to be her turn to cook. She'd probably make the football head a lousy bowl of spaghetti. Because 1) she'd never been a good cook and 2) she lost her appetite ever since she saw what happened to Rhonda yesterday morning. She'd barely eaten more than a few carrot sticks since yesterday. Though she didn't want to think about it, images of Rhonda's splattered brains kept resurfacing in her mind.

Helga glanced at the clock before pressing down further on the accelerator. She was already going ten miles over the speed limit but she didn't want to arrive late.

Plus there was that weird phone call she'd gotten from Phoebe. What could be so important that her oldest, most trusted friend couldn't dare say it over the phone? If only she could to Phoebe's place quickly she could find out and make it back to her apartment in time for supper with Arnold. Maybe she should call Phoebe now and sort things out. She reached for her phone with one hand while the other stayed on the steering wheel.

Suddenly Helga heard a loud police siren behind her. "Great! Just great!"

She pulled over and waited impatiently for the police officer to get out of his car. She didn't care about getting a speeding ticket, even if it was a large one, she just wanted to get back downtown as fast as possible.

So when she saw it was Sid, formerly Sid the Kid, the rascal of PS 118, who had pulled her over, she muttered, "You have got to be kidding me!"

Sid tapped at her window and she rolled it down.

"Hi Sid."

"That's Officer Sid to you, Helga." Sid pointed at the badge on his chest.

Helga rolled her eyes, "Yeah right."

"Do you want to know why I pulled you over?" Sid said.

"Oh let me think Sid-"

"Officer Sid," he corrected.

"Yes, uh, Officer Sid," Helga crossed her arms, "I may have gone a few miles over the speed limit if I remember correctly."

Sid smiled, "Try 20 miles over the speed limit, Helga. Do you know what the ticket for that is?"

"A lot?"

"Try $1500 dollars," Sid said.

Helga's jaw dropped.

"Plus you were on your phone while driving, that's an extra $500 fee."

"Oh c'mon Sid! Cut me some slack here! I wasn't even using my phone, I was just holding it!"

"To your ear?" Sid chuckled, "Don't bullshit me Helga, it won't work. I deal with professional bullshitters and crooks for a living. Anyways, that's not why I stopped you," Sid scratched his head, "I don't want to give you a ticket."

"Wait, what? You don't?"

Helga couldn't believe her luck.

Sid shook his head."No. I've got bigger fish to fry than handing out speeding tickets. I was actually following you."

"What?!"

"I've been keeping an eye on Eugene, making sure he doesn't try to flee the country on one of his private helicopters before Rhonda's murder is solved. I saw your car pull up to his driveway. I wanted to know why you were there."

"I went to Eugene's for the same reason you're watching him, I wanted to know what happened to Rhonda."

Sid narrowed her eyes, "Did you find out anything?"

"No...Other than that Eugene is still the same snivelling, pathetic wimp he's always been...except it's Lila Sawyer, not his mother, who runs his life now."

She tried to laugh but her laughter felt hollow. There really was nothing funny about a situation where Rhonda was dead.

"Listen, Helga, Eugene may not frighten you but he has a lot of power Helga. Power and money can buy you a lot of things, including the assasination of your enemies. I would advise you to be careful and not go around provoking people Helga. I say that as a friend, not a police officer. Here's my card, if you find out anything, my personal phone number is on the back. Give me a ring, just as long as it's not while you're driving. Otherwise I may have to give you that $2000 ticket," he winked at her before leaving.

Helga watched dumbfounded as Sid strutted back to his car.

Did Sid actually just hit on her?

Well that was new and creepy! Ugh!

Helga arrived back at her apartment later than she expected. Arnold was in the living room watching the tv when she came in.

"Hey Helga. I ordered pizza. Didn't know how long it would take you to get home." Arnold smiled and to Helga, Arnold's football head and smile was the best sight she had seen all day.

"Oh now I don't have to cook. Thanks." Helga threw off her coat and flopped down on the couch beside Arnold.

"How was your day, you look bothered by something."

"Oh nothing just Sid pulled me over and hit on me. It was weird."

Arnold's face turned bright red. "SID! The last guy on earth who I would ever think would be interested in you. Back at PS 118 he hated you."

"Yeah well some things change I guess, but next time he tries to hit on me I'll reintroduce him to Ol' Betsy here."

"And some things never change." Arnold chuckled. There was a moment of silence.

Helga checked her phone. There was a message from Phoebe.

 **'Where are you? We need to talk.-P'**

Helga felt annoyed at how weird Phoebe was being. Why didn't she say what she wanted to say over the phone?

 **'What do you want Pheebs? You've been acting strange.'** Helga wrote back

 **'Meet me at The Eloquente Cafe in 10 minutes? It's important. -P'**

Ugh! What was up with Phoebe lately? It's 10pm and raining! No way was she going out now. She looked at Arnold beside her on the couch; no she definitely wanted to stay here and curl up with a pizza and a movie.

 **"Can't Phoebe. I'm busy. If you have something important to say, just say it over the phone to me right now."**

 **"I can't Helga. Meet me now or wait til Monday. I have to be out of town for the next few days, so now is the only time I've got.-P"**

Helga was appalled as she texted back, **"Are you kidding me? You're going to be out of town? What about Rhonda's funeral, it's on Friday? You're going to miss it?!"**

Phoebe didn't reply.

 **"Hello? Phoebe?"**

Arnold glanced over at her phone, "Who are you talking to Helga?" he sounded concerned.

"Just Phoebe," she muttered, "I can't believe her! She's going to miss Rhonda's funeral. She says she has be out of town but I don't believe her! She's been acting really odd."

Arnold nudged her gently on the shoulder, "Phoebe's probably just stressed about Rhonda's death. She and Rhonda were friends too. Maybe this is her way of coping. Or she doesn't want to believe Rhonda's dead, so if she doesn't go to her funeral she can still pretend she's alive..She could be in denial."

Helga grimaced, "Phoebe can't be in denial Arnold! She was there when Rhonda died! She saw Rhonda's smashed lifeless body on the pavement right after it happened, she didn't even look scared!"

"People react in different ways, maybe the trauma of the situation didn't hit her until now."

"Maybe...but I know Phoebe, she's not the nervous type and she sounds scared. Though even I can hardly believe it myself. I just can't believe Rhonda's funeral is Friday."

Helga's eye got glassy and he could tell she was going to start sobbing. Arnold grabbed Helga's face and put it in his chest.

"We'll get through this together Helga." He said as he stroked her hair. Arnold would let Helga cry into his chest all night if she had to.


	5. The Eulogy

**Chapter 5: The Eulogy**

Friday came sooner than expected as Helga slipped on her black dress. It was a cloudy day in Hillwood with no light in sight. It was supposed to storm heavily today. I guess even God cries for the beautiful and the damned. Helga looked at herself in the mirror, checking to make sure her mascara hadn't smeared yet. Her eyes were still puffy, nothing a little eyeliner couldn't fix.

Arnold came into the room. He looked nice,even in his all black suit. Helga couldn't help but notice how much his frame had grown since elementary school. No longer was he lanky and scrawny but a tall and muscular man.

"Helga," Arnold watched Helga apply her makeup. "Are you ready yet? It's almost 12:30. We don't want to be late."

Arnold's stern tone made her mess up her liner. Now she had a nice long, black line from her eyelid to her left cheek. She gritted her teeth when she saw herself in the mirror.

"Oh Criminy, Football Head!" Helga turned around so Arnold could see the mistake. "Look what you did. You made me ruin my make up!"

"We can't be late. You can do that in the car." Arnold protested turning to leave.

Helga gathered her make up back into her small bag and put it in her purse. Did understand how hard it is to do eyeliner in a moving car? What did Arnold know about beauty anyway?

"Not like you need make up anyway." Arnold muttered under his breath before leaving the room with Helga following him shortly after.

Of course Helga didn't hear him.

-/-

"Rhonda Wellington Lloyd born January 12, 1991 and died November 4, 2015. Rhonda was always a lively women. She attended PS 118 middle school right here in Hillwood and later graduated from Hillside High. She did not attend college because she knew she wanted to be a successful model. Rhonda has been photographed in Vogue last fall and was a successful clothing model. She returned to Hillwood after her business ventures in Paris, craving home. She became one of Hillwood's most prominent and social elite. She became engaged to boyfriend of two years, Eugene Horowitz the day before her death. Though we will miss her, Rhonda will live on through her family, friends, and her numerous ad campaigns."

The eulogy was being read by Eugene at the church. Helga began to feel the tears fall down her face. This whole situation was messed up and no one was going to point out the obvious: that her boyfriend probably killed her. Arnold clutched Helga's hand under the pew.

"What are you doing? I'm fine." Helga whispered to Arnold as she pulled her hand away quickly. She sniffled and quickly wiped her tears away. He didn't want Arnold or anyone else seeing her so weak, feeling so defeated.

"No, Helga you're not. Let me in." Arnold retorted. He once again reached his hand out to her, offering support.

This time she let her hand melt into his. Here in that moment with Arnold's hand in her's she felt like she wasn't alone in her pain.

The funeral ended with many tears and sniffles from the packed church. The large party came to pay their respects to Rhonda. Some were former classmates, coworkers, models she had worked with, and even her former lovers attended. The group of mourners made their way out into the graveyard to spend their final moments with Rhonda, who was now sleeping forever pretty in an ivory casket.

The sun was nowhere to be found as the clouds covered it. The wind chilled all the attendants who wore their black garb. The ceremony was closed casket. Her head injury too disfiguring to be the last image her friends and family would want to remember her by. All who stood in the graveyard were silent. A young woman was being lowered six feet into the ground, where she would rest forever and always.

~/~

"Remember when Rhonda made that cool list and everyone was on it except Helga. Then no one showed up to her party later on because everyone went to Arnold's party instead."

The room erupted with laughter as people recalled their favorite moments with Ms. Lloyd. There was food, wine, and a room full of old friends who needed to catch up **.**

Drinks were flowing as the old gang was all together. It was like nothing had changed, including Arnold's ridiculous crush on Ms. Perfect.

Lila and Arnold were cuddled up in the corner talking amongst themselves. Helga could tell Arnoldo was feeling extra confident. A little liquid courage anyone?

Helga remembered when Arnold was her shoulder to cry on. Now that idiot was all over Lila in the skimpy blue dress that clung to her like a second skin. But he wants her to let him in and open up? Helga didn't know what kind of girl he thought she was but she wasn't going to fall for his nice guy routine. Somehow Helga felt that Lila was doing this just be spiteful for questioning her precious Eugene.

Helga looked over again, glaring with all her might. She wished she hadn't. There was Arnold kissing Lila in a passionate embrace. It made Helga's stomach churn. She couldn't take it anymore.

Helga excused herself to the bathroom, hoping a little separation from the situation would calm her down. What was she upset for anyway? Arnold is a grown man and could do what he wanted, with whomever he wanted.

Helga walked up to the sink to wash her hands. She ran the water and squirted soap on her hands. It smelled like cotton candy. It reminded her of Rhonda. Now that she thought about it the house certainly did have a feminine touch.

It dawned on Helga she could do a little searching while everyone else was getting drunk downstairs. Where was the bedroom?

Down the hall to the right was the room Rhonda slept. One side of the satin bed sheets was still undone. Eugene couldn't bring himself to make it yet probably. To the left of the bed was a door. She opened it and was a massive walk in closet. Shoes, purses, dresses, coats, silk blouses all with some tags on them. The clothes in here cost more than Helga could ever imagine. It smelled fruity and floral-like, smelled like Rhonda.

Helga flipped through the racks looking for anything that looked out of place. She found a mink coat, took it off the hanger, and searched through the pockets. Completely bare. She was going to put it back but couldn't pass the opportunity to wear something so expensive.

"When in Rome." Helga shrugged and put the coat on. She already felt expensive.

Helga started rummaging through shoe boxes seeing if she could find anything she may have hidden. She found a pair of Louboutin pumps she couldn't resist trying on.

"Geez I feel like a basketball player in these. How could Rhonda ever wear these everyday?"

She felt something stabbing her foot in the heel of the shoe. It was a piece of paper with a name and number on it. Rhonda wrote the contact information of someone named Frankie and stuffed it in her shoe? She was hiding something.

"What are you doing in here Helga!"

Helga stuffed the piece of paper in her own shoe before answering, "Hey Eugene I was just on my way out. Got lost on my way to the bathroom."

"And you happen to put on my dead fiancee's clothes!" Eugene was furious. He clenched his fists together like he was resisting hitting her.

"Take her things off and LEAVE. YOU ARE NOT WELCOME HERE." Eugene ripped the jacket from Helga's body and pulled her out of the closet.

"Listen I'm sorry. Can-"

"LEAVE HELGA AND DON'T EVER COME BACK!" Eugene yelled, dragging Helga out of the bedroom.

By this time the security heard the disturbance and two big, burly men appeared.

"Get her the hell out of my house! I don't care if you have to drag her by her hair!" Eugene ordered and the two big men picked up Helga by her arms and carried her down the stairs. Helga was kicking and screaming, causing the rest of the party to stop and stare.

"Helga, what did you do?" Arnold rushed over to Helga and the two men, smelling of alcohol. "Put her down."

The men continued to carry Helga out of the house to the front yard. Her hair was disheveled and her make up was all over her face. Even her dress had been ripped when she was trying to get the men off of her.

Everyone at the party followed the men and watched the scene in the front yard. Gasps and shocked faces were all Helga saw as she was thrown on to the pavement, outside of the Horowitz Estate's large gate.

Arnold came running out after her.

"What happened?" He asked

"If you weren't so busy making out with Lila you would know."

"Listen, we can talk later. I'll take you home right now."

"No Arnold. You're drunk. I'll get a cab. You keep having fun screwing Ms. Perfect over there."

Helga pulled out her phone and called a cab. She was both embarrassed and determined. She was determined to find out who Frankie was and why was Rhonda hiding them?

 **Author's Note: Well, wasn't this chapter just explosive and we got a clue in Rhonda's murder. Who do you think Frankie is and why was Rhonda talking to him? Also, how do you feel about Lila and Arnold? Reviews are always welcomed. Thanks for reading :)!**


	6. Phone Numbers

**Chapter Six: Phone Numbers**

Arnold had gotten home at 10pm that night. He staggered into her room when Helga was getting out of the shower.

"Helga! I'm home." Arnold called to Helga who was in her towel. "And we need to talk."

Helga was more than irate with Arnold. It took him four hours to get back home and he didn't even check on her. She had only been dragged and thrown on hard, cold pavement hours before.

"You can't put on a dead girl's clothes and go through other people's things and act like that's okay!" Arnold yelled at Helga as she explained why Eugene dragged her out of his house. "And you lied to me. Sid didn't just flirt with you. He pulled you over!"

"So maybe I got pulled over or something!" she spat, "What do you care?"

"I'm your roommate, and friend Helga of course I care! I worry when you almost-"

"Ugh stay out of it Arnold! I don't need you to mother me," Helga turned to her dresser, to pick out some more comfortable clothes, "I can take care of myself, thank you very much. Now if you would please leave my room, I'd like to change!"

Arnold crossed his arms but made no sign of leaving her room.

"Why did you get pulled over Helga? Oh let me guess! You were speeding again, weren't you Helga? How many times do I have to remind you how dangerous it is when you drive like a maniac?"

Helga wished she could throw something at his annoying know-it-all football head.

"I was only speeding to find out about what really happened to Rhonda. Didn't you hear me when I said Rhonda had a secret she was hiding from everyone including Eugene!"

"So what if she did Helga? It doesn't matter now. I can't believe you would be so disrespectful to Eugene by going through her things like that. Whatever secret you want to find out about Rhonda isn't worth losing your friends over."

Helga was shocked. She had never seen him this angry before. Maybe it was the alcohol or maybe she really fucked up... But she would never willingly admit that to Arnold.

"What do you care? The only thing you care about is making out with Lila!"

"I can date who I want Helga. Don't make this about Lila. This is about you violating our friends' trust."

"Oh yeah well will Lila go pay the light bill and cook dinner for you and wash your dirty socks? Eugene's pain of an assistant, Lila threatened to call the police on me! The bitch wanted to get me arrested for assault! "

"Lila has nothing to do with how you've been acting! You have been lying to me, being secretive and you haven't even thought about how anything makes me feel, about how any of this effects me. I know you went to see Eugene alone two days ago. You conveniently left that part out." he looked like he wanted to punch the wall, "You went to Eugene's. Alone! Without telling me! You have got to be kidding me Helga."

Helga balled her fists, "I needed to get some answers!"

"Rhonda was just murdered, Eugene is a suspect and you thought it was a good idea to go over to his house alone?! What were you thinking?!"

"I don't need to explain myself to you Arnoldo."

He narrowed his blue eyes at her, "I'm just worried about you Helga. I know Rhonda's death has taken it's toll on you and you're grieving, but you can't just go around barging into the people's houses -"

"JUST GET OUT OF MY ROOM ARNOLD! RIGHT NOW!" She couldn't stand to have Arnold play therapist with her when he didn't understand the first thing about her.

"Fine just don't call me when you get arrested!" Arnold stormed out of the room.

-/-

Helga sat on the edge of her bed; she didn't know whether to yell or cry. She was so frustrated. Why was Arnold being such a jerk? Couldn't he see that she was just trying to find some answers about Rhonda's murder? Couldn't he see that Lila was a phony two-face bitch? But Arnold acted like she, Helga Pataki, was the one being a bitch. Then they had the nerve to throw her out of the party, as if she'd done something wrong! Meanwhile Arnold, Lila and everyone else thought it was okay to make-out after her funeral and screw around while drunk. Did anyone care that Rhonda's murderer was still out there or had they just gone to her funeral for the free booze? It was complete B.S.

Helga held the piece of paper she found in Rhonda's shoe.

Perhaps this whole crazy evening was worth it if this note about Frankie held some clues to her murder. Though who on earth was Frankie and why would Rhonda want to hide his contact information in a shoe?

Helga couldn't remember Rhonda ever speaking of someone called Frankie ...then again Rhonda knew so many people, nearly half of Hillwood, that Helga couldn't possibly know all the people that Rhonda knew.

Helga exhaled loudly. If only Arnold wasn't being such a jerk, she could talk to him about it. Usually Arnold had a good brain on his shoulders for solving stuff...except when his brain turned to a Lila-obsessed pile of mush. Considering that Eugene was a prime suspect and Lila was his personal assistant, there was no way she could trust Arnold right now. If she tried to tell him about Frankie, he might tell Lila and then she would know what Helga knew. No, as long as Arnold was close to Lila, she couldn't trust him.

Helga fiddled with her phone.

She needed to talk to someone about it. But who?

She didn't have that many friends she could trust with something so important. Phoebe was out of town and had been acting strange lately...

Suddenly Helga remembered the business card Sid had given her.

Of course he could help her! He's Officer Sid now, and it didn't hurt that Sid wasn't obsessed with Lila...but seemed to like her, Helga Pataki, right now...though she'd rather not think of that.

She digged through her purse to find his card then dialed the personal cell number he had scribbled onto the back.

As the phone rang in her ear, Helga bit nervously at her lip. _C'mon Sid, pick up your phone..._

He finally picked up and Helga felt incredibly awkward speaking.

"Ummm hi...Sid?"

She could practically hear Sid smile on the other side of the line, "So you did call me!"

Helga frowned, "Don't get too happy, bucko. I'm just calling to ask about Rhonda's murder investigation."

"Yeah, I seem to recall you were thrown out of her funeral party just for that reason. Apparently, you were snooping around."

"Yeah so what? Why weren't you, isn't that your job?"

Sid's voice seemed to sober up, "Helga, I appreciate you care about Rhonda, but next time, leave the snooping to us, okay? You're not the police and you need a warrant for that...So did you find anything?"

"Yeah, I did. It's why I'm calling you, believe me I didn't call you for your conversation!"

"Ouch, Helga. Seriously, ouch," Sid mocked, "You know how to hurt a man in his heart but there's no need to be so rude...I am a professional-"

She snorted, "Sure." He was really damn professional when he flirted with her two days ago instead of giving her a ticket. Not that she was complaining.

"So what was it you found?" Sid sighed.

"It's this note, about some guy named Frankie, that I found in Rhonda's shoe. It has his name and phone number. It seemed like she desperately wanted to hide this information."

"Hmm, that is _interesting_ ," Sid's voice sounded scratchy, "Listen Helga, don't try to contact Frankie or anything. He could be dangerous...For all we know he might be the killer...How about we meet tomorrow, say around lunch and discuss it?"

"That kinda sounds like a date Sid...uhh Officer Sid."

Sid laughed, "Trust me Helga, it's not..though if you want to call it a d-."

"NO!" she spat.

"Fine, fine. Just bring the piece of evidence with you tomorrow and meet me at Dingo's Diner during your lunch break, okay?"

"Okay. Thanks Sid."

"See you tomorrow Helga."

She clicked her phone off and sank back on her bed.

Perhaps it was good that Sid-officer Sid-was around...although he was still creepy and weird as he'd always been. Helga just hoped that he was as professional as he said he was...and not trying to hit on her again...Though now that she thought of it, Sid wasn't that bad looking anymore.. _.Yuck, who am I kidding?_ Helga buried her face into her pillow with embarrassment.


	7. Secrets and Lies

**Chapter 7: Secrets and Lies**

Helga met Sid at Dingo's Diner the following day at noon during her lunch break. Funny last time she was here she was dressed up as Celine, trying to impress Arnold. Now she was considering not even talking to Arnold. When she got there Sid was already seated at a table in the corner of the restaurant. He had certainly changed for the better. Police Academy did him good. Not only was he buff, he had grown taller. That police uniform certainly didn't hurt his case either. He looked more like a man than a little pipsqueak like he did before. A bit like a young Sean Penn. Helga couldn't deny that Sid was attractive now, but he probably was the same pain in the a** he was in elementary school.

"Hey Sid." Helga said abruptly as she took her seat across from Sid. Sid cleared his throat on purpose and Helga corrected herself, "Ugh. I mean OFFICER Sid."

"Thank you. Now did you want to order food or something? I'm starving." Sid rolled up the sleeves on his uniform, revealing a forearm covered in tattoos. He went to become a police officer and got tough? He couldn't take a hit to save his life before, now he could sit through an arm full of tattoo needles.

"Yeah sure Sid. Listen, I really came to give you the information not make small talk so if we could speed this process up I have to get back to work."

"Helga, Helga, Helga. Always rushing. Relax. Have a drink or something. Pick out whatever you want on the menu, my treat."

Helga groaned and picked up the menu. There was always a catch with this guy. The waiter came and they placed their orders. Helga got the caesar salad and Sid being Sid ordered steak with a baked potato and a side of french fries. The food came 15 minutes later. Sid was literally inhaling his food.

"Could you be anymore gross Sid? Didn't your mom teach you table manners?" Helga almost wanted to gag watching him eat. His mouth was covered with steak sauce. Professional? Professional my ass! Sid being professional was only a fantasy he made in that marble sized brain of his.

"I'm a grown man. I need all the carbs I can get, I work out five days a week." Sid's plate was completely empty. He wiped his mouth with a napkin and proceeded to work on his fries. "Anyway, the evidence you found at Eugene's, I understand you obtained it illegally so you have to trust that I have a bit of disbelief with your little phone number here."

It seemed like Sid was now a completely different person now. He was serious with a stern tone. He sat up straight and now looked Helga directly in the eyes. He had dark, Italian eyes. Sid was kind of...intimidating? Helga could see that he took his job seriously.

"It was stuffed in a shoe, a shoe that had never been worn before. She was hiding it Sid." Helga slid the paper to Sid. He picked it up and quickly examined it.

"Hmmm definitely isn't Rhonda's handwriting. It was written on the back of a faded club receipt. Club Phoenix?"

Club Phoenix! Arnold worked there at night at the bar. Had he and Rhonda met before she was killed? Helga was silent as all the possibilities that Arnold was hiding something from her ran through her mind. That lying bastard! HE had the nerve to accuse her of hiding things from him when he was hiding things from her!

"Anyway. I'll bring it up to my partner, Detective Berman. We can run the number at the station and get some info on this Frankie character. Thanks for the tip Helga but next time leave it to the professionals. If my boss finds out I got this without a search warrant I could be thrown off the case." Sid went back to stuffing fries in his mouth.

Helga watched him silently from across the table

"You okay Helga? Silent isn't your style."

"Arnold's just being a stupid football head like always and Phoebe's being as weird as ever."

"What? Arnold not putting it out?"

Helga almost blushed that was so blunt. Sid thought he and Mr. Goody Two Shoes were together just because they lived together.

"NO! Arnold and I," Hela shouted. "are NOT a thing."

"Alright, alright. No need to be disruptive. You know I can take you in for disturbing the peace." Sid joked, putting more ketchup on his fries. "I just assumed since you had such a huge thing for him when we were younger and since you guys are two perfectly normal adults who happen to live together at least a one night stand would be in order."

Helga choked on her soda. Arnold and sex in the same sentence. He couldn't get it on even if he tried, let alone with Helga. He had no girlfriends, at least none she knew of since they've been living together. The closest thing he got to being a remotely sexual human being was his make out session with Ms. Perfect. When she was younger she used to fantasize about living alone with Arnold and how romantic it would be but, Arnold had never even hinted at having an interest in anything like that at all. Of course Helga thought about sex with Arnold before. Arnold was anything but unattractive and he was easily available with him being in the next room. She was a woman, he was a man, and they both had working parts so why not?

What was Helga even thinking! Sex. With Arnold. Her roommate who couldn't even wash his own clothes until a couple months ago. Laughable at best.

"Arnold and I haven't… we've never… we don't do THAT" Helga was so flustered and Sid was enjoying making PS 118's most feared bully turn into a ball of mush.

"I don't know why. Arnold's an idiot if he hasn't tried to make a move on you yet."

"What's THAT supposed to mean Sid? I'm some blonde bimbo everyone can just screw?"

"It means that I think you're attractive. I think you're beautiful Helga and if Arnold doesn't recognize that he's much more of a fool than I thought."

Helga was dumbfounded at Sid's directness. Before Helga could open her mouth Sid's walkie talkie went off.

"Code 3. We have a 10-71 at Pembroke Law Firm. All officers on report at the scene. Copy?"

"10-4. 10-4. Officer is dispatching. Time, 12:41." Sid sprung up and unrolled his sleeves quickly. Something was definitely wrong. He removed the safety from his gun.

"Sid! What's happening? Pembroke is where Phoebe works. What's going on?!"

Sid's scanner went off again. He put the talkie up to his mouth and listened. He continued to run out of the restaurant.

"Hostages now involved. Please use caution. Copy?"

"10-4. Caution noted. Officer is now on the move to the location. Time, 12:43."

"SID! WAIT! WHAT'S HAPPENING?!" Helga ran behind him as Sid got into his cop car.

"Sorry Helga, civilians need to remain safe. Don't worry." Sid turned on his sirens and police lights and speeded off.

~/~

Helga watched the news that night. Helga could hardly contain herself she was so worried. There was a shooting and hostage situation at Pembroke's, the big law firm downtown where Phoebe worked. Later on she called Phoebe to make sure she was okay.

"Phoebe! Oh thank God. You're okay!"

"I'm fine. Remember I said I would be out of town Helga."

"Well sooooooorry for worrying about you. What is going on with you? What do you have to tell me? "

"Helga, please don't be mad. It's about Arnold and Rhonda."

"Spit it out already!"

"I went for drinks after work one night a couple months ago with Gerald and I saw Rhonda there at the bar talking to Arnold."

Well that wasn't anything new. He was a bartender for Christ's sake. People HAD to talk to him. Rhonda was probably trashed anyway. She was known to not be one that could hold her liquor.

"I overheard their conversation and it seemed like she was spilling her whole life to him about how she was so unhappy and she had been feeling not like herself lately. How she had gotten into a really big mess and she didn't know who to go to. I didn't hear most of the specifics but I did see him slip her something written on a piece of paper. It looked like a number."

"FRANKIE!" Helga yelped. Arnold was Frankie! Or Arnold knew Frankie! This bastard had been knowing what was going on with Rhonda all along.

"I, I think they were having some sort of secret affair or secret relationship, from the looks of it that night. I overheard my boss saying he was going to be Eugene's lawyer and he had something big on Rhonda that would expose her. Something about her past. I'm terribly sorry." Phoebe sounded like she was in a huge hurry to get off the phone. "They-they were trying to kill my boss last night. I, I have to go."

"Who was trying to kill your boss? Where are you?"

There was dead static on the other line of the phone.

Nevermind her boss. She was going to kill Arnold. She was going to murder his past, present, and future. HE had the nerve to be sleeping with Rhonda but lecturing her about friendship.

She just couldn't deal with this right now. If what Phoebe was telling her was true Arnold could not be trusted. She could be living with the enemy. She took out her phone and texted the only person she knew who could get the answers she needed. By now he probably had the information she needed on Frankie and it could take her mind off Rhonda and Arnold, well Arnold and Lila at the moment.

" **Hey. I heard some officers got shot in the hostage situation."**

" **I'm fine. Bullet free. Thanks for asking."- S**

" **I have to see you right now."**

" **Come to my apartment ."- S**

" **Be there soon."**

Helga knew this wasn't the right way to go about finding out if the accusations were true but what other choice did she have?

'What the hell am I doing?' Helga thought as she brushed her hair and put on some lipgloss before slipping on her best pair of skinny jeans. She was going to see Sid and she was primping herself? How was that even possible.

She bumped into Arnold on the way out. He took one look at her appearance and frowned/his face became very concerned

"Where are you going Helga?"

"None of your business Arnold." she got her keys and purse off the kitchen counter before heading out of the apartment to catch the elevator.

Arnold followed behind her, "Helga it's late, I know we had an argument last night but-"

"But nothing." Helga snapped, "This isn't just about last night. I know about you and Rhonda, Arnold, and how you lied to me!"

Arnold shocked "Me and Rhonda? What are you talking about?"

"Don't lie to me Arnold, or should I say Frankie? Phoebe told me all about it but don't worry, what you do in your spare time, is your own business. So keep out of mine!"

"Frankie? What is that supposed to mean?"

She slammed the door in Arnold's face.

 **Author's Note: Some explanations of the police jargon used in this chapter. Code 3 means to turn on lights and sirens. 10-71 means a shooting is involved. 10-4 means message received. As always constructive criticism and reviews welcomed.**


	8. Attraction and Frustration

Chapter 8: Attraction and Frustration

Arnold sat around their apartment, feeling increasingly frustrated.

It was past 12 o'clock and Helga still hadn't come back. He had tried calling her but Helga had turned off her phone so she was completely unreachable. He had eaten cold pizza from the other night and tried to distract himself with some watching television, but his thoughts kept drifting to his absent roommate.

When his cell phone finally rang, he felt a wave of relief rushing through him.

He hoped it was Helga calling to tell him not to worry or some other snarky comment that let him know she was fine without actually forgiving him after their fights the past two nights. Not that he cared about their fight anymore, he just wanted to know Helga was safe.

"Hello?" Arnold said urgently.

"Hi Arnold," a sweet girlish voice replied on the other line.

For the first time in his life, he felt disappointed it was Lila, not Helga.

"Oh Hey Lila."

Lila laughed. She had a light, tinkling laugh, not at all like Helga's huskier, brusque laugh.

"Did you forget me from last night?" Lila giggled.

Arnold scratched at his neck, feeling guilty. "Of course not Lila. Actually I meant to call you to apologize. I'm sorry about what happened at the funeral, we both drank too much and-"

Lila interrupted him, "You don't need to apologize Arnold. I have no regrets."

"You don't?" He knew he felt a bit embarrassed they'd used Rhonda's funeral as an excuse to get smackered up.

Lila giggled, "No, of course not. I know it was a bit naughty to kiss you at Rhonda's funeral but I've just been ever so regretful since I turned you down years ago. When I saw you again, I realized what an awful mistake I had made."

"Yeah, we all make mistakes. Sometimes I wonder how things could've turned out differently..." For some reason he thought of Helga, whom he had ignored in high school.

"Well you know what they say, there's no time like the present!"

Arnold smiled sadly, "I guess you're right."

He changed the topic. "Hey can you believe what happened today downtown?"

"I know! I can't believe something like this could happen in Hillwood! I had to shut my eyes when I heard they'd taken hostages. I was so scared."

"Helga's upset about it too," Arnold frowned as he stared at their empty apartment, "Of course she doesn't handle these things as well as you do."

Lila's tone changed, "Oh?"

"Helga's still taking Rhonda's death pretty bad, you could say she's grieving."

"I'm so sorry Arnold. I heard what happened to Helga at the funeral, they say Helga got thrown out for putting on Rhonda's clothes! The poor girl sounds obsessed with Rhonda, almost like she wants to become Rhonda! I've been ever so worried," Lila said with almost motherly concern for Helga and Arnold was genuinely impressed. Arnold felt as if someone finally understood him.

"I've been worried about Helga too! And you're right, Helga has become obsessed by Rhonda ever since her murder. Do you know what she told me today?"

"What?"

"She accused me of having an affair with Rhonda!"

"I could never believe that of you Arnold! You are much too much of a gentleman to have affairs, let alone with Rhonda, Rhonda only went out with millionaires!" Lila's voice changed tones, "What else did Helga say about Rhonda?"

"I can't remember, but it was very odd. Truthfully, I didn't understand what Helga was going on about," Arnold sighed in frustration.

'Maybe I should have a girl to girl chat with Helga?"

"You're sweet, Lila but I'm not sure Helga would appreciate that. Helga doesn't take sympathy too well, she always wants to appear strong..." he stared at Helga's pink coat which hung by the door.

"Well, if Helga talks anymore about Rhonda, tell me and we can discuss it. I know several of Hillwood's best psychiatrists that could help her!"

"That's a good idea. Maybe we can meet and talk about it."

Lila laughed, "Why don't you come over right now?"

"Right now?" he stammered.

"Yeah, my place. I live downtown," Lila said, "I'll give you directions."

Arnold stared very hard at the clock which was quickly approaching midnight then at Helga's pink coat by the door. He sighed heavily in frustration, "I'm sorry Lila, I wish I could but I have this thing with Helga..."

Any other woman would've gotten jealous at the mention of another woman but Lila could not be more understanding.

"Don't worry about it. I know you and Helga are roommates. If you can't make it tonight, I can see you tomorrow."

"Great. You're the best Lila."

"Goodnight Arnold."

~/~

'What the hell am I doing?' Helga thought as she brushed her hair back.

Helga stood outside the door to Sid's third storey condo mentally debating with herself whether to knock at his door or leave. Her fingers dug nervously at the strap of her purse.'Criminey what am I really doing here? It's 9pm, after hours, alone at his home. Sure I'm not done up like a tart, in fact I'm still wearing my work clothes. Still he could get the wrong idea...'

Too late.

Sid opened the door without his shirt on. Helga tried her best not to stare but failed catastrophically. Sid wasn't lying when he said he worked out five times a week.

Sid grinned from ear to ear, "Can't get enough of me, can you?"

Suddenly all the worry she previously had for Sid's safety during the hostage situation disappeared. She punched him in the arm.

"Yeah right, get a grip! You know I'm only here because I want to discuss the case, OFFICER Sid!" she scowled though she knew her face was red.

"Sid or Sidney is fine," he corrected with a smile.

Helga quirked her eyebrows, not sure what he was playing at, "What happened to Officer Sid?"

"I'm off duty so it's just Sid you're talking to now," he winked at her, "so I can be as unprofessional as you want me to be."

Helga's face was as red as a tomato by now but she managed to splutter,"Ugh! Spare me Sid before you make me sick! And why aren't you wearing a shirt, is this how you spend your time unprofessionally?! Because I'm pretty sure you can't even get into a decent restaurant without a shirt on!"

Sid smirked, clearly enjoying every second of her obvious discomfort; he seemed to be an expert at making her blush.

"I didn't actually take my shirt off to impress you Helga. I was tending to a wound on my back before you arrived." He turned his back so she could see the large cut behind his shoulder blade.

A shred of the concern she felt for Sid earlier returned, "I thought you said you weren't hurt!"

"It's just a scrape. My fault really. While we we're dodging to get into the Pembroke building, I scraped my shoulder against cement."

Helga bit nervously at her lip, "What happened today? Why were people being held hostage at Phoebe's law firm?"

Sid sighed, "Why don't you come in and have a drink?"

"I'd rather not!"

"Well, I've had a long day, so excuse me if I need a shot of whiskey."

He went back into his house and she reluctantly followed him in. She was surprised to find he was neither a slob or had bad taste. Sid's condo was clean and sophisticated with large glass windows that overlooked the city.

"Hey, this place isn't too shabby," she said as she eyed the expensive leather furniture and pool table. It was a million times better than the apartment she and Arnold had.

"I try," he said from the other room, "When you come from nothing, you learn to appreciate simple comforts. Still it's not much."

"No. It's nice Sid, really. You've done well for yourself."

"Thanks."

She was relieved when he came back with his shirt on. He grabbed a pitcher of sangria off the counter and two cups.

"Are you sure you don't want a drink, Helga?"

Helga eyed the pitcher thirstily.

"Uh why not!" She was already at his home, late at night, and had seen him without his shirt on. How much awkward could it get? She needed something to calm her nerves.

"Thanks, this is good," she said as she took a big gulp and wiped her mouth, "So why were people being held hostage today?"

Sid laughed, "You don't waste any time to do you?"

"I'm just trying to make sense of this mess! First Rhonda, now hostages downtown, I feel like our whole city has gone crazy!"

He shook his head sadly, "What you're seeing is just the underbelly. Hillwood has always been this crazy but most of the shit that happens, happens behind closed doors."

"But I don't get it?! Why are these things happening?"

"Two words, Helga. Two words and then that's all I'm saying, so you can forget about asking me about Frankie or the hostages or anything more."

"What are those two words, Sid?" she asked impatiently.

"The Mafia."

The mafia? Did this mean Rhonda was killed by the mafia or that Frankie was a mafioso? A million questions swam through in her head.

"You have to tell me everything!"

Sid's face was completely humourless, almost angry, "No. Helga, I don't. And I'm not going to, you're getting way ahead of yourself. You're not a detective."

She was furious Sid was treating her with kid gloves and refusing to tell her anything important, "I need to know what's going on Sid! Rhonda was my friend," she said with more emotion than she intended, "and Phoebe works at the place that was held at gunpoint today!"

"She wasn't there."

"So she could've been there!" Helga spat, "Who's next, me?!"

"It will be you if you continue nosing around, dammit! Do you have any idea how dangerous the mafia is Helga? A guy can get killed for asking questions. You need to forget about Rhonda's murder and let me and Harold do our jobs."

"I can't do that!" Helga shouted, her voice threatening to break with emotion.

Sid realized how upset she was. He paused for a moment to let Helga collect herself. When he spoke again, his voice was soft and full of understanding as if she could tell him anything and he'd listen to her, "What's going on Helga? You seem upset."

"I'm not upset! I'm just angry!"

"Ok, so why are you angry?"

"Rhonda was murdered, what else would I be angry about?!" she shouted.

He stared her right in the eye. "Is that really true or are you focusing on Rhonda's murder to distract you from what's going on in your own life?"

"What are you a shrink now?!"

"No, I'm just concerned," he paused, "How's everything with you and the little man?"

"Arnold?"

He nodded.

"Arnold and I are NOT a couple!"

Sid smirked, as if pleased by her response, "You've said that before. Somehow I didn't believe you til now."

Helga was curious. "Why didn't you believe me until now?"

Sid smirk widened and Helga suddenly wished she hadn't asked.

"Just the way you stared at me when I didn't have my shirt on, it was like you've never seen a male body before."

Helga felt her face go red. She could die from embarrassment.

Abruptly she stood up and grabbed her purse off the table, she'd had just enough of Sid's teasing as she could take for an evening.

"I better go, Off- Sid, it's getting late!" she fumbled with her phone, pretending to be busy.

He stood up as well. "Sorry I didn't mean to embarrass you."

"You didn't embarrass me, Sidney!" she stamped her foot on the ground.

"Then why are you leaving?"

"Because I have to go! It's not like you've told me anything useful anyways and it's past 12 for pity's sake! I have to work tomorrow! Not everything is fun and games and sangria!" she tried to sound as angry and no-nonsense as possible, like a school teacher scolding someone. Which was rather ridiculous because she was red in the face.

Sid raised his hands in defense, "Fine, calm down. I'll walk you out. It's getting late for me too."

They walked downstairs together to her car and Sid chattered away about random topics like baseball. Thankfully he didn't try to tease her again. Because she didn't know how much more she could take.

"Goodbye Sid!" she said quickly as she got in her car and started the ignition.

"Goodnight Helga," he leaned against her car window, "You want to talk to me about anything, don't hesitate to call. Now stay safe and forget about the case, okay?"

She nodded her head just to get away from him. Though she had no absolutely no intention of stopping.

Author's Note: Uh oh looks like Arnold has competition and if he's not careful Helga could be stolen from him. He's too busy with Lila to notice anyway. You guys like Sid? He's such a great guy right? Anyone already rooting for Sid and Helga?


	9. Darkness

**Chapter 9: Darkness**

Arnold sat in the living room chair that faced the door to their apartment. His eyes were halfway closed and he didn't know how much longer he could stay awake. But everytime he thought of drifting off to sleep, he thought of Helga still being out.

 _No, I've got to stay awake. Helga has a lot of questions to answer and I'm sick of her running away from me._

 _Lila's right, Helga has been acting very weird. Well, it's time Helga confronts her own behaviour._

The clock's hands had nearly struck one in the morning when Helga tumbled through the door.

Arnold narrowed his blue eyes at Helga. He stood up from the chair.

"Where have you been Helga?" he raked his eyes over her outfit and the light makeup on her face.

"Ugh! Are you still awake? I thought you'd be with Lila or something," she shrugged as she took off her coat and threw her purse on a chair.

"No, Helga! I couldn't go out with Lila, because I was worried about you."

Helga laughed bitterly, "Well, sooooorry to be a major cock block to you Arnoldo." She walked off to the kitchen to get herself a glass of water, Arnold followed behind her shaking his head.

"This isn't a joke Helga! There's been two major crimes in the past week, hostages were held at gunpoint downtown barely a few hours ago! It's not safe for you to be going out alone without telling anyone where you're going!"

"As if you never go out, Arnoldo!" she spat and took a sip of her water.

He crossed his arms. "I'm not a female, Helga. You know it's more dangerous for women. Quit being childish."

Helga slammed down her cup of water on the counter, nearly spilling it.

She was nearly shaking with anger, "Listen here Bucko! I go where I want to go, when I want to go and not you or Sid or anyone can tell me otherwise!"

Helga was so angry that she hadn't realized what she'd said though Arnold had not missed it.

"Did you just say _Sid_?"

Helga shrugged her shoulders and looked side to side. Her words slowly dawning on her. "Yeah? So what? He's around town isn't he..." _Oh shit._.

Arnold stared at her incredulously, "You were at Sid's weren't you?"

Helga shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, she wasn't used to Arnold staring at her for so long and so intently. "Yeah so what? Sid's around town, he's a police officer, why wouldn't I run into him? Geez make a big deal out of nothing!"

"It's one o'clock in the morning Helga! Why the hell would you be at Sid's place at this hour?" Arnold shook his head, he almost didn't want to believe he answer.

"It's not what you think Arnold!" she crossed her arms.

"Yeah, then what was it? Were you and Sid just reading bedtime stories together?! Do I look like an idiot, Helga!"

 _What does it even matter to him?!_ she thought desperately, _He's with Lila! He never wanted me and I well I got over him a long time ago...though why do I care so much that he's looking at me with hurt and betrayal in his eyes._

"Sid and I were talking about the case!" she screeched but Arnold walked right past her and into the hallway.

"Of course! How could I forget? Sid's a police officer now and you're a fanatic about solving murders, of course you would be together! How stupid of me!"

"It's the truth, Arnold," Helga said numbly, "and I'm not sure why you even care!" She felt like crying but buried the tears deep inside her where no one, not even Arnold, could see them.

"Whatever, Helga. You're right about one thing, it is none of my business. Sorry I asked," he went to his room before slamming the door behind him.

Helga crumpled her face into her hands, pulling at her hair. 'How the hell did my life get so f***up so quickly when I haven't even done anything wrong?!'

~/~

In another part of town, in a remote alleyway, two shadowy figures met each other late at night. One was a rough looking man in a leather jacket and jeans, who wore his greasy black hair slicked back from his forehead. He had a stubby cigarette in his mouth which was slowly burning down into nothingness.

He sidled up to a large parked car that had its window rolled down only by a few centimetres.

Inside, unseen behind the dark tinted glass of the car, a voice spoke softly, "Did you get what I asked for?"

The man leaned closer into the window and tried to peer inside the car but couldn't see anything, which made him slightly uneasy, "Did you bring me my money?"

"Of course," the voice in the car replied, "But first hand over the documents."

The man smiled grimly and opened the lapel of his jacket to reveal a gun hidden in his pocket, "Uh-uh. I want my money first."

The person in the car did not sound frightened but replied steadily, "Fine, take your cash, it's in the trunk. Hurry."

The car's trunk popped open and the man stepped around to take out a large blue duffle bag. He opened the bag to peer in and his eyes widened at the sight of the fat bundles of 100 dollars bills. The bag weighed nearly 10 pounds in only paper cash.

"Leave the documents in the trunk," the voice spat.

The man took his time to stamp out the butt of his cigarette on the pavement before he lifted several filled black briefcases into the trunk.

The silence of the night was temporarily disturbed as he slammed the trunk shut with a grunt.

The person in the car rolled their window down by ever a sliver more before slipping their gloved hand out with a note in it.

"Consider this a thank you note for your services."

The man peered uncertainly before grabbing the piece of paper from their hand and nodding. As the car drove away into the thick night, he opened the note and shuddered a little.

It was a picture of his pet chihuahua "Pinky" with a message scribbled on top of it, ' _If you say so much as one word about this, we won't' hesitate to snap little Pinky's neck and then yours. Thanks for doing business with us. -W"_

The man's pulse increased and he felt cold dread run through his veins. Whoever was in that car certainly didn't mess about. How they even knew about Pinky was a feat in itself. He kept his homelife and address well hidden, and few people would have guessed a tough guy like him spent his spare time pampering his pet chihuahua. He crumpled up the note in his hand and scuffled off with the bag of money, fulling intending to keep as silent as the grave.


	10. Public Relations

Chapter 10: Public Relations

Helga couldn't fall asleep. She kept tossing and turning. Everytime she shut her eyes, she saw his face. That stupid annoying football head. She thought she was over Arnold a long time ago, she burned all her notebooks about him when she had turned 15. So why did he make her feel guilty for even thinking about Sid? Better yet, why did Arnold act like she did something wrong?

It wasn't as if either Sid and her or Arnold and her were a couple. Sid and her were just...she didn't even want to think about it. And Arnold and her were roommates. It was completely platonic! They only became roommates 6 months ago by accident when he answered an ad she placed. It was just a greater accident that they happened to get along now that they were both adults. Maybe because she wasn't obsessed with him anymore, so she didn't need to be defensive and he didn't have to be at the receiving end of her bluntness. At times she almost thought there could be something more if Arnold ever showed a sign of wanting more but he hadn't. Not once had Arnold ever tried to hit on her or make a move on her. Perhaps he was just being a gentleman. But it made her feel even more invisible than in high school when he totally ignored her. Because now they lived together, saw each other everyday, and he still couldn't see her as anything more than a friend.

They got along perfectly for six whole months. Until now Arnold started dating Lila and he thought Sid and her were a couple. Then he blew a fuse...almost as if he were jealous of Sid because he'd never seen her with other guys before.

'Oh this is so screwed up! Criminey. My nine year old self would be dancing to think that maybe, just maybe, Arnold would be jealous over me. Back when we were kids, Arnold didn't even blink an eye that one time I tried to make everyone believe Stinky was my boyfriend. Now he's acting like he's actually upset over the suggestion that I was alone at Sid's place. Like Arnold P. Shortman is actually jealous of Helga G. Pataki!'

Helga groaned and pulled at her hair.

'But I don't even want that now do I? I don't care if Arnold's jealous. I'm over him. That ship sailed a long time ago. Anyways, Arnold probably wasn't jealous. He's just being his usual goody-goody samaritan self. He was probably worried about my safety and only overreacted in a protective, older brother sort of way. Though why did he freak out so much about the possibility that Sid and I might've slept together? Oh god I'm never going to sleep if I keep thinking of this!'

Helga stared at the clock 2am. Great just great.

Helga struggled out of bed and flipped open her laptop. She was too anxious about things to even care that she had to get up at 7am. There was no way she could sleep when her mind kept running at a million miles per hour.

She went to the Daily Globe's website and scrolled through the most recent news stories and coverage of the Pembroke's hostage crisis. Sid had been so damn unhelpful in answering her questions, it was as if he seemed to have forgotten she could just google everything anyways. Though she couldn't find any references in the news between Pembroke's and the mafia. Null for when she searched for Rhonda and mafia. So maybe they were keeping somethings secret below the level of the news. Though she had a feeling that somehow everything tied together. It couldn't be just a coincidence that some of Hillwood's most grisly crimes were committed in the same week, there had to be an explanation.

She clicked on the most recently updated story of what happened at Pembroke's. She sniggered sardonically when she saw it included an interview between Harold and a news reporter. So Sid refuses to tell me anything but apparently Sergeant Harold can blab to the paps.

She skimmed through the lines. Again the Pembroke's hostage crisis was discussed without any reference to Rhonda's murder or the mafia. Harold didn't seem to be telling the reporter anything useful until one part. Helga stopped and reread it.

"So Sergeant Bergman, you have given us a lot of descriptions of the masked assailants and how the public can contact the police if they have any information, but you have omitted to tell us why this act of terror occurred? Pembroke's is a law firm, not a bank. Why would anyone go through so much trouble to attack them?"

Bergman: Because this was a robbery of information, Miss Penelope. A perfect crime of information.

I: You mean files were taken from the law firm?

Bergman: I can't answer all your questions, but yes files were taken.

I: Do the missing files give us any clue who the assailants might be?

Bergman: Our job would be a hell of a lot easier if they had. But the people who did this took a large number of files so that we couldn't track them down or understand their motive.

I: But why would Pembroke's specifically be targeted for this type of robbery?

Bergman: Pembroke law firm is one of the largest in Hillwood, they have some of the most prestigious clients. If someone were to steal info on all those people, they would acquire alot of power.

I: Power for what?

Bergman: Bribery, coercion, who knows? They got away so we can't ask them now. We're just going to have to keep an eye out for people making suspicious activities and ask the public to contact the police with any information."

A crime of information? What about the hostages? Did they use them for information or access codes or were they actually trying to kill people too? Neither Harold or any of the other news stories seemed to answer these most important issues. If she tried asking Sid, he'd probably give her the same bullshit answer of not being able to share confidential police information...and then try to hit on her again. She almost laughed to herself. Ugh. What was it with Sid? Some of the time he acted like he wanted to help her, some of the time he just teased her. She shook her head.

Helga kept googling until she fell asleep face first on her laptop. She woke up at 6am to find a puddle of drool over her keyboard. 'Geezus,' she muttered as she wiped the drool off the laptop with her sleeve. She just hoped she hadn't wrecked that. She looked longingly at her bed then back at the time. There was no way she could slip in another hour of sleep and still make it in time for work. 'Criminey I might as well just go to work early...at least then I won't have to see Arnold if I slip out early.'

She tiptoed out of the apartment with her laptop bag and a bagel in her mouth. The pigeons and pink sky of the rising sun over Hillwood would be almost beautiful if Helga's life didn't feel like it was going down the gutter.

~/~

Meanwhile at Horowitz Inc., 7am sharp, the early risers of the corporate world were ready for a board meeting

Eugene popped some anti-acid pills, he felt like he was getting an ulcer from stress. For the past week he had been drilled by the police, the FBI, reporters and everyone else who wanted to get under his skin. Even with the best lawyers and PR representatives, Eugene felt himself getting nailed to a cross. His millions and millions of dollars could only buffer his public image so far and he was panicked Rhonda's murder might negatively affect his pharmaceutical company's sales.

Thank god for Lila. In the eye of the PR storm they were in, Lila seemed to be the only one keeping calm. She seemed convinced that Eugene would come out of this situation unscathed and repeatedly assured him that there was 'no way Hillwood would throw one of its most richest citizens under the bus.'

"I don't know Lila, I feel like everybody secretly thinks that I did it!" he fidgeted with his pen as he stared at the large pile of legal papers he was supposed to read through and sign.

"There's no need to panic, , there is zero evidence against you, and our corporation is legally untouchable," Lila trilled. She adjusted the lapel of the red power-suit she wore.

"I don't know how you be so sure of these things Lila! You seem to think our corporation is infallible but that's simply not the case! The bigger we are, the harder we fall!" Eugene could name a long list of enemies he had made on his way to the top. For every gain, there had always been those jealous of his success. People who wanted nothing more than to take him down a few notches.

"We can't fall," Lila assured him, "Horowitz Corp. may have many enemies but we have the truth! Their lies won't bring us down."

Eugene wasn't sure whether Lila was being incredibly naive or incredibly cynical, "The truth is easily buried in lies, Lila. Right now the police have respected my right to confidentiality but if the media decide to play the blame game on me..." his heartbeat pumped as he contemplated what a living nightmare his life would become if the media publicly insinuated he was Rhonda's killer.

Lila flipped her hair back, "Which is why we have hired the best possible PR firm, Mr. Horowitz. And that's only the beginning, our PR team have booked you an interview with a major network to further tell your side of the story."

"You booked me an interview?!" Eugene asked in mild panic. The thought was nerve wracking. He'd have to answer a bunch of questions about Rhonda's death in front of a team of cameras live on air.

"Sir, the public needs to hear your side of the story. They will be ever so sympathetic with you after they hear everything Ms. Wellington put you through!"

Eugene started sweating, "Have you ever heard of not airing dirty laundry? There are a lot of things that could be said about Rhonda's life and half of them aren't nice!"

"It's for the best, Mr. Horowitz, I assure you. But don't worry, the interview will be carefully scripted and blunder-proof."

She stood up and passed him a large manila envelop.

"What's this?" Eugene asked, waving a hand at the envelope she had just placed on his desk.

Lila tucked her brown tresses behind her ears and smirked, "The truth. And lots of it."

Eugene eyed the heavy envelope, it was labelled on the outside with one simple word, 'Rhonda'. He started to open it, pulling out some photographs. He stopped and stared in disbelief at Ms. Lila Sawyer.

"How did you get these?"

She batted her eyelashes innocently, "A little research."

For the first time since Rhonda's death, Eugene cracked into a genuine smile, "You really are a lifesaver Lila. Consider this a raise!"

Lila beamed, "I really am only doing my job, Mr. Horowitz, but I humbly thank you for your appreciation."

Lila felt her phone ring, "Excuse me a minute, Mr. Horowitz."

She trotted through Eugene's glass penthouse office to a secluded hallway. She smiled widely when she answered and heard a familiar voice on the other line.

"Ready to pop the biggest news story of the year?"

"Baby I'm all ears."


	11. Daily Life

**Author's Note: Just a quick note we have deleted chapter 6, making the story have one less chapter. As a result chapter 6 is now 7. 7 is now 8. 8 would be 9. 9 would 10 and 10 would be 11. Chapter 10 is new but an email was not sent because we changed chapter numbers. For that reason both chapters 10 AND 11 are new chapters so please go back and read 10 as well as this one. Thanks.**

 **Chapter 11: Daily Life**

Arnold Shortman was at his internship. He was in the worst mood possible after what Helga did last night. His mood was not improved as he quickly filed various folders and labelled things to got into their correct cabinets. It was hardly a challenging task that required a lot of mental capacity. Normally he wouldn't have minded it but now all he could think of was Helga with Sid. The thought of them together like _that_. Thankfully Helga had slipped out earlier than him so he didn't have to see her this morning. Though what could be said at this point?

Thank god for Lila. At least she was honest and nice. His mood was improving a little as he thought of the amazing date he was going to have with Lila tonight. He was barely focusing, on his filework and had made a few glaring errors when Gerald came over to see him.

"Hey Arnold Man! Come over here for the announcement."

There was a crowd of people around Gerald. Gerald had said yesterday he had a big announcement to make to the whole team. He stood in front of a large board with a white cloth covering it. All were waiting to see what his big announcement was. Arnold joined the crowd,

"Without further ado I am please to announce that we are the first newspaper in Hillwood to break the Rhonda Lloyd story! This will definitely get us new readership!"

Gerald unveiled the paper to every one. Of course it was on the front page. There was a picture of Rhonda, sprawled out on some floor, only in her bra and underwear with a bottle of pills in her hand. The headline read: **Hillwood's Perfect Socialite: Secrets of an Imperfect Life.**

Arnold was absolutely enraged. Gerald was tarnishing her image just to sell more papers. Where did he even get this picture from? Arnold had to set this straight. He couldn't just sit by and let Gerald do this to their friend.

"Gerald." Arnold yelled in a demanding tone. He pulled Gerald by the arm, forcefully into his office. Arnold slammed the door behind them.

"Geez man what's wrong with you?"

"You know what's wrong Gerald. You spreading lies about our friend, days after her funeral!"

"What I wrote isn't a lie! I would never publish anything without credibility behind it. I have my sources."

"What sources Gerald? Sources that didn't even know Rhonda!"

"No Arnold! My source was Eugene okay."

"Eugene! Why would he release these awful pictures? That was going to be his wife!"

"Because he didn't want everyone to think Rhonda was innocent and he was the monster. It's my job to get out the truth. Whether you believe it or not Rhonda had issues man! I interviewed Eugene and he told me all of the dirt in their relationship. I owe it to Hillwood to reveal both sides of the story. Yes, she died when she was so young and successful but she wasn't innocent Arnold."

"It's still not right. You aren't telling both sides of the story Rhonda is dead and she'll never be able to defend herself."

"Listen, the sooner you learn that every story isn't black and white the better. You won't make it in this business always writing about the good, simple stories. Everyone has secrets, even Rhonda Perfect Wellington Lloyd."

Arnold let out a frustrated sigh and then angrily pushed all of the stuff off Gerald's desk. Everything fell to the floor with a big thump. He was just so tired of hearing about Rhonda. He didn't know what to believe. He knew one thing, this wasn't right.

"Well maybe I don't want this position anymore!"

"You're just gonna quit on me! This is the best opportunity you've got. You want to spend your life mixing drinks?"

"No Gerald I'm not quitting on you. You already quit on yourself and at least people are honest about who they're friends are at the bar. I'm out of here."

Arnold stormed off and was not looking back. He needed to blow off some steam and was not ready to tell Helga he quit his paid internship, but at least he still had his regular job at the bar. She would still be beyond pissed at him and tensions were already high between them. He hoped Lila was available to talk right now because he needed her positive energy right now.

"Hello, Lila? Do you think we can talk?"

~/~

Helga was supposed to be writing warning labels on baby cough syrup but instead she was googling Rhonda, reading everything she could find. She needed some sort of lead. Suddenly all these blogs surfaced with the same image of Rhonda half naked with a pill bottle in her hand.

Criminey! What was going on?

She clicked on a link and the story came up. Following the picture was an interview with Eugene:

 _Interviewer: I'm sorry for your loss man. Rhonda was a talent that will truly be missed,_

 _Eugene: Yes. I'm still not over the fact that she's gone Gerald. The funeral happened so soon. It's crazy, everyone thinks I'm the bad guy, that I killed her._

 _I: So you're confirming that you didn't kill Rhonda?_

 _E: I could never do that to her. To be honest she had more of a chance of killing herself than I ever did._

 _I: What does that mean?_

 _E: Rhonda was a model as we all know and a very popular one at that. When I first met her she was battling an eating disorder. She was always judged. Always had to be perfect. The pressure was sometimes too much for her. She needed an escape. Plus, she had trouble sleeping. She replaced starving herself with self-medicating. She took lots of sleeping pills which she claimed were for her insomnia. When she was home I could make sure she was taking the proper amount but when she went to do shows and shoots in other places she would take too much and be out for days. The photo I have given you was taken by her manager the day after she did her famous Vogue shoot._

 _I: So you're saying Rhonda Wellington Lloyd, your fiancee, was abusing prescription sleeping pills?_

 _E: Yes, when she couldn't get them she would disappear for days. Sometimes she would make me claim I had trouble sleeping to get more from her doctor. Who knows what Rhonda did to get those pills? I believe the person that killed her could've been helping her._

 _I: Here's the story folks. Rhonda was not all innocent like we thought. This story coming directly from her would be husband's mouth._

What?! This couldn't have been true. Rhonda would never abuse drugs. This was insane! How dare Eugene throw Rhonda under the bus to save his own image! He was unbelievable. She couldn't read anymore without feeling the need to throw her computer out of the window.

Helga began typing the warning labels on her computer to have them ready for her boss. She had to do some sort of work today didn't she? It wasn't like the bills were going to stop coming and Arnold's little bar job was barely bringing enough money to pay the rent, let alone the water, electricity, food, and television bills. Thank God Gerald got him that paid internship. It saved them many months from not being able to have the lights on.

As Helga was typing her phone vibrated from receiving a text. It was from Sid.

 **I hope you have a great day Beautiful :) -S**

No one had ever been this nice to her, except maybe Arnold. She found herself smiling at the words on the screen. Could she like Sid? What was she a little girl? Here she was getting happy over a text message from a guy… a guy who happened to make her libido rise higher than the Empire State Building. Sid was also useful. He could be a huge help to finding out what Rhonda was doing the night she died, since he was the lead investigator on the case.

Helga quickly texted back : **Thanks. You too :).**

This Sid thing was beginning to become a conflict for her but now with this stupid pictures surfacing of Rhonda passed out nearly in her birthday suit Helga definitely had more questions. Helga went back to typing her work, hoping to get home soon.

~/~

Sid was smiling at his phone gleefully. Meanwhile his partner, Detective Harold Berman was searching for fingerprints. They were at the Gates Hotel surveying the place where Rhonda took her last breath: Room 1214. It had been roped off with police tape for two weeks now. No one could get in or out of the room except the two investigators.

"Are you going to help or are you going to giggle at your phone like a girl?" Harold asked dusting off a glass. Sid quickly put his phone away in his pocket. This was the 6th time the two investigators had been at the scene of the crime. The room looked the same as the first time they walked in. The glass stray shards of glass from a wine glass on the floor, Rhonda's bed unmade, and the huge hole in the window that she fell out of, were all the same. Even Rhonda's pink nightie was still laid out on the dresser with candles on the nightstand and rose petals on the floor surrounding the bed.

"I don't see why we have to search for prints again. Nothing came up as a hit except Rhonda's. We even hit the door knobs, there's nothing left here Harold." Sid looked around the room again, surveying the area. Everything was literally exactly the same. Nothing out of the ordinary, except the glaringly obvious fact that Rhonda was planning for an intimate evening that night.

"Check the drawers or something Sidney." Harold ordered as he continued dusting the table for more fingerprints. Sid sighed, his feet lagging as he went to check the dressers yet another time. He swept through the drawers again; nothing but women's underwear and shirts in there like the last time. Sid let out an annoyed sighed and stepped back, scratching his beard.

"I'm starting to think we'll never get any clues here Harold. The drawers are clear."

"I'm sure we'll find something. New information about Rhonda resurfaces everyday. You read Gerald's story in today's paper."

"I saw it and I pitched it right in the trash. If she was so much of a pill popper why haven't we found a trace of benzodiazepine in this room?"

"Maybe she was here setting up a drop?"

"Clearly not! Who sets out candles and wine for their drug dealer Harold?! Jesus, don't tell me you believe what that criminal Eugene said! He's just throwing his dead wife's legacy under the bus to save his own ass."

Sid looked up once again. He noticed the stain on the wall. Dark stains on the wall were usually left by pieces of furniture pressed against the wall for long period of time. The dresser was about three centimeters pushed to the left of the shadow. Sid's eyes widened.

"Harold! You see this? The dresser someone moved it deliberately. The shadow on the wall is visible. We haven't moved this dresser have we?"

Harold came right over and the two men pushed the dresser aside. Sid kneeled down examining the carpet. Some of it was raised as if someone pulled it up and reupholstered it. Sid pulled out the pocket knife from his pocket and cut into the carpet so he could lift it up. There was something under it.

"Harold! Rhonda really did leave us a clue!" Sid picked up a thin orange, manila envelope. "Let's open this bad boy up and dust it for prints. We can log the new evidence back at the station."

Sid was finally happy a breakthrough in the Rhonda case had finally come along. Rhonda had given them a clue in plain sight. That meant she knew someone was after her, but the question was who? Sid would maybe soon find out.

 **Author's Note: Do you believe that Rhonda had a pill problem or do you think Eugene fabricated the story? Reviews always welcome. Thanks for reading!**


	12. Sunset Arms

**Chapter 12: Sunset Arms**

Arnold walked out of the Daily Globe's headquarters with a box of his things in his arms, including his laptop and some files. He gave one last forlorn lingering glance at the large glass office tower before stepping out it's revolving doors for the last time. _Somebody pinch him,_ he thought, _I can't believe I've just quit._

After months of slaving away as an intern, serving coffee and kissing ass, he'd just thrown away his one opportunity for becoming a journalist. Plus, his only other source of income to cover the rent and the basic necessities of life.

But could he have done it any other way and maintained his integrity?

Arnold suddenly understood why Gerald was such a star reporter. Gerald would do anything for a good story, including selling out old friends and publicly disgrace them with personal details of their life. Arnold could never do the same to an old friend, no matter how much the newspaper payed him. He couldn't stand to see what they were doing to Rhonda's image so soon after she had been brutally murdered. Any way you cut it, it was wrong. You couldn't just sell your soul for a good story.

He put his box of things, the only remnants he had left of his brief stint at the Daily Globe, into his trunk and slammed it shut. As he got into his car, he decided he needed to take a break from home and visit his grandparents at the Sunset Arms. The last thing he wanted was to see Helga right now. He drove the short distance from downtown to his grandparent's boarding house.

~/~

Arnold smiled when he caught sight of his grandma gardening out in the little shrub patch in front of the house. Both his grandparents were in their 70s but somehow they managed to have more energy than many twenty year olds. His grandmother ran to give him a hug as soon as she saw him. She was still carrying the garden spade in her gnarled hands and some of the dirt rubbed off on his white shirt, not that he minded.

"Arnold!" she squeezed him even tighter in her arms, "How nice to see you. Come on in, your pa's fixing the sink in the kitchen."

"Right," he gave her a kiss on her cheek before stepping into the cool house.

He had an unpleasant view of his grandfather's rear end as he got into the kitchen. The old man was crouched beneath the sink in a pair of sagging pants, so he was nearly full mooning Arnold.

"Umm hi Grandpa." _And grandpa's butt._

"Oh hey there Shortman!" Phil called from underneath the sink.

Arnold moved closer and surveyed the leaking faucet, "Ah can I help you or anything?" He felt guilty that he hadn't visited his grandparents in more than a week. Usually he stopped by every day or two.

Phil laughed giddily like he'd just told a good joke, "Nonsense, Arnold, since when do you know anything about plumbing?"

"You taught me a little," he shrugged. He knew Phil always wanted to teach Arnold plumbing and apprentice him, because it was a good paying trade. Instead Arnold had opted to follow in his parents footsteps and study journalism. Though 'what use is journalism' Phil would often say.

"I'm just teasing you," Phil said as he finally got up from under the sink, "I know you're no plumber and never will be. How is everything at the Daily Globe or whatever that fancy newspaper's name is?"

"Not so good. I quit my job today."

"What?! I thought you wanted to be a reporter Shortman!"

"I do grandpa but Gerald wanted to publish a morally compromising story about Rhonda. You know Rhonda right, our friend from school who was murdered?"

"Poor dear Rhonda," Phil wiped away a tear, "She was Helga's age wasn't she?"

"Uh, yeah," Arnold replied uncomfortably. He didn't like hearing Helga and Rhonda's murder being brought up in the same sentence. For some reason there was something unsettling about hearing how they were the same age...and how under different circumstances, Helga could've been the one murdered...like if Helga had been the one engaged to Eugene. Though that was impossible. Or was it? It seemed equally impossible a week ago that Helga could be with Sid but that was true. That somehow had become a reality.

Phil read his grandson's worried expression, "Is something wrong between you and Helga?"

Arnold sat down at the kitchen table. He sighed heavily, his features resigned.

"I don't know, Grandpa, Helga and I used to get along but lately she's been acting like a completely different person. I thought she was just grieving Rhonda's death but I don't know anymore."

Phil tried to catch his eye, "You know I don't mean to pry but I always thought it funny that you two became roommates as adults when you used to hate each other as kids."

"We're just friends Grandpa. We just happened to graduate at the same time, in the same city and I answered her ad by accident. It was completely by chance that we even became roommates."

"You keep saying that shortman but somehow I'm not convinced. You say Helga and you are only roommates or friends or whatever you young folks call it these days but I know one thing for certain: you care about this Helga girl."

"Of course, I do. She's my friend. Why wouldn't I?"

Phil smiled tiredly, "Let me put it this way Arnold: do you care about Helga the same way you care about Gerald?"

"Gerald?" Arnold wasn't even sure what he thought about his best friend, or former best friend, right now. Hadn't he just quit because Gerald Johanssen let him down?

Arnold shook his head, "It's different with Gerald, he's not a girl. I don't have to worry about him in the same way. Helga's all alone, barely speaks to her family, and has an attitude problem. Helga makes enemies wherever she goes, it's like she thinks she has to take on the whole world by herself!"

Phil laughed.

"What's so funny?" Arnold frowned.

"Nothing. I was just wondering if you're little blonde friend still has the unibrow?"

"No she doesn't. She got rid of it years ago." _He almost missed it._

"Well then I suppose she must look quite nice nowadays?" Phil suggested.

He crossed his arms, "So she's changed over the years, what does Helga's appearance have to do with anything?"

"Well I don't know, shortman, you tell me. Your roommate, who you see everyday, is a pretty young blonde maybe your feelings have changed...Is that such a crazy suggestion?"

"Trust me, it's crazy grandpa. And even if it weren't, it doesn't matter anyways. Helga's dating Sid."

"Sid?! That skinny kid that used to whine about everything? She chose him over you?!"

Arnold felt his temper rising and stood up. "She didn't choose him over me, we were never a couple to begin with!"

"If you say so Arnold, there's no need to get touchy!"

"I'm not getting touchy," Arnold said with folded arms in a defensive tone, "Anyways, I'm dating Lila."

"Lila?" Phil made a face of disgust, "Isn't she that good for nothing who broke your heart in high school?"

"She didn't break my heart," Arnold narrowed his eyes, "Things aren't so simple, people make mistakes, they change-"

Phil was about to say something less than endearing about Lila but was interrupted.

At that moment, before the situation could any more tense, Grandma burst in with a pie dish in her hands. The smell of fresh raspberry wafted through the air.

"I made your favourite Arnold why don't you take a seat and I'll cut you a slice with ice cream."

"Oh goody Pooky!" Phil rubbed his hands together, "I thought I smelt pie earlier but I couldn't find it."

"That's because I was hiding it, I didn't want you eating the whole thing before Arnold arrived!"

"It's alright grandma, I'm not that hungry."

"Don't be silly, Arnold. I'll serve it with ice cream on top."

"Now that sounds good!" Phil said and eagerly took a seat beside Arnold.

Grandpa's smile faded when he saw his wife give a larger slice to Arnold and only a tiny scoop of ice cream on his own slice.

"What's this about?" he scowled as he poked his fork at the tiny slice.

"Quit scowling Phil, you know Doctor Mahabi told you to cut down on sweets!"

Phil crossed his arms, "Doctor Mahabi wouldn't no up from down, let alone healthy from unhealthy. I didn't get to my age by eating vegetables!"

Arnold chuckled and tucked in another mouthful of the delicious raspberry pie and melted ice cream.

Half an hour later, Arnold looked down at his watch and saw it was 5 o'clock.

"I'd better go."

He kissed his grandmother goodbye and Phil followed him out to his car.

"Listen, shortman, I'd like to give you one more piece of advice before you slip off."

Arnold scratched tiredly at his neck. He had a feeling what Phil would try to lecture him on and he wasn't looking forward to hearing more of his Grandpa's opinions of Helga or Lila.

"What is it, grandpa?" he asked warily.

Phil smiled, "You're a good kid, Arnold, you've always done the right thing morally. Like today when you quit because you didn't want to betray Rhonda's memory to sell a story. But as good as you are morally, I think you're absolutely rubbish when it comes to your love life."

Arnold cringed at hearing his grandfather talk about his love life.

"Please grandpa-"

"No listen what I've got to say, shortman, I'm only fifty years older than you so I've been around the block a few times."

"What?"

"Listen very carefully: Stop being an idiot."

"Gee, thanks grandpa. That's really helpful advice."

"It's only helpful if you use it. Now start using that big noggin of yours," he tapped at Arnold's head and Arnold rolled his eyes.

"Thanks, I'll try. Goodbye grandpa."

Grandpa laughed his high pitched nasally laugh as Arnold drove off.

Arnold wasn't sure whether his grandfather meant what he said. It was true that he usually did the moral thing and went to far ends to help others, while his own life was less than perfect. But that didn't make him stupid. Whose life was perfect? And so what if Lila wasn't perfect. She was human, she made mistakes. Arnold could see that now so he didn't worship her like he did back in high school. He wasn't stupid for taking her back. If anything, their relationship could be deeper and more meaningful now because they both saw each other as faulted human beings. There was no fantasy anymore, it was pure visceral reality.

As for Helga, he didn't know what to think. Helga had been a mystery from day one and she only had become more complicated as she got older. He had tried many times to understand Helga but clearly it wasn't working. Right now he didn't even know who Helga Pataki was.


	13. Too Late to Apologize

**Chapter 13 : Too Late to Apologize**

Helga was not looking forward to Arnold's inevitable apology. Sure enough, as soon as she got home, Arnold was waiting to talk with her. Undoubtedly he would come up with some

lame ass excuse for why he blew a fuse the other night when he thought she was with Sid. Meanwhile he was the huge hypocrite who slept around with Lila and Rhonda and god who knows who else. With Arnold's blonde hair and bronze skin, it wasn't exactly hard for him to get laid.

"Can I talk to you Helga?"

"Ugh what do you want Arnoldo!" she pushed past him.

"Would you please listen to me for a second?" he pleaded and grabbed her hand.

Helga stared in annoyance between his green eyes and his hand. He had larger, slightly tanned hands and it was annoying how just a simple gesture like that could make her stop in her tracks for a moment. How holding her hand could make her feel like a stupid child again excited that Arnold Shortman was paying her a bit of attention. Before she remembered she was mad at him and she couldn't care less if he wanted to hold hands and sing kumbaya or some other bullshit hippie crap. She yanked back her hand from him.

"What do you want Arnold?" she repeated in a deadpan tone that made perfectly clear she was not amused or interested in what he had to say.

"I want to apologize."

"There's a surprise! Mr. Goody-two shoes wants to apologize, why am I not surprised?"

"Can you stop mocking me Helga!"

Helga didn't say anything but crossed her arms and tilted her head up in a way that said she was both listening and not listening.

"I'm sorry for screaming at you last night, okay? I was out of line and I had no right to get angry at you. It's your right to stay out how ever late you want and...with whomever you choose...but I only got angry because I was worried."

Worried. Of course. Helga thought. Not jealous. Arnold probably wouldn't even care if she had ten boyfriends as long as she was using protection and he knew she was "safe". Not that she even had even one boyfriend. More like zero.

"You could've just answered my calls and told me you were with Sid, instead of leaving me wondering if something happened to you," Arnold finished his apology with a sigh.

Helga felt like laughing. "Whatever Arnoldo, that's a pretty lame apology. But let me just clear up one thing: Sid and I are not-"

She was going to say 'not a couple' but Arnold interrupted her.

"-are none of my business. I know that Helga, I'm sorry if I was nosy before."

Helga raised her brows. Why did he look so hurt when he said that? Suddenly she doubted he didn't care whom she dated. If she didn't know better, she would almost say Arnold looked jealousy. Though maybe she was imagining things again.

Arnold scratched at his hair, "Listen I know we haven't been getting along lately, but I want to work things out. You're important to me, Helga, you're my roommate."

Wait a minute.. _.I'm his roommate? That's it? Not even his friend. The first thing thing that comes to his mind when he thinks of me is "roommate". Meanwhile Lila only has to bat her eyelashes and he thinks "love" "hubba-hubba" and "perfect"._ Helga felt her blood boil. How could she for a second delude herself into thinking he was actually jealous!

"I've also got something else to tell you," Arnold said, bursting her bubble of thoughts.

"Now what?!"

"Okay, don't be mad but I quit the Daily Globe."

Helga felt her temper go over the edge; this was just the icing on the cake.

"WHAT? Oh Criminy! Why did you do that? By the way thanks for now making me the primary breadwinner. I LOVE how you didn't talk to me first before making this decision."

"I know it was stupid but Gerald published the story about Rhonda being on drugs. It completely defamed her character. I just couldn't work there knowing that they were publishing terrible lies like that."

"Now you care about Rhonda?! After all this you told me to let it go, now you quit your job over her. She really must have been a Grade A lay!"

"STOP! Stop talking about that because that didn't happen. Rhonda and I were never a thing. If you think we were you're delusional."

"I'M delusional! Oh gee coming from the person who quit his job when he found out everyone doesn't have the same delusional, perfect ass ethics code as him. Papers publish stories to make money NOT to protect lives. If you think they're going to miss you there you're crazy."

"Oh I'm definitely not crazy but you are! You need serious help. You need to stop obsessing over Rhonda's murder and move on with your life Helga."

"Oh I'll have a great time moving on when you can't pay the rent at the end of the month!" Helga yelled , "I might even find a roommate who doesn't act like they're a cut above everyone else because of their idiotic ethics and self-righteous speeches!"

Arnold grimaced and she could tell he was really hurt. "Can you stop screaming at me Helga. I thought I'd made it clear that I don't want to fight with you anymore. But you seem to want to make everything into a fight and to be honest, it's getting kind of exhausting."

"Whatever Arnoldo you don't have to deal with me if you don't want to. I'm just your roommate, I'm easily replaceable!" She stormed out before he could see her cry. She didn't want him to ever see her cry again if she could help it.

 _'Let me in,'_ he'd told her at Rhonda's funeral. It was only a few days ago that he said those words but it couldn't have felt further in the past. And she'd been right to instinctively to not let him in. One unguarded moment and she felt her self-esteem being trampled on all over again.

She couldn't trust Arnold Shortman. Arnold wasn't a bad person but she couldn't trust him. She left the apartment and started driving a bit mindlessly until she remembered she wasn't alone in this world. She still had Phoebe.

 **A/N: So you may have noticed we changed the title. Does anyone like it? :) If you are thinking this is going to be like the movie of the same name, don't worry, it's not.**


	14. Dead Ends

**Chapter 14: Dead Ends**

'C'mon Phoebe pick up for pity's sake.' Helga jabbed at her phone, repeatedly pressing on Phoebe's number. She desperately needed to talk to her best friend now. Unless she went to her parents, whom she hated, Phoebe's place was the only other place she could think of crashing.

Helga scowled heavily as her call went to Phoebe's voicemail again.

"You have reached the voicemail of Phoebe Heyerdahl, if you wish to leave a message, do so after the tone..."

Helga left a quick and snappy message.

"Dammit Phoebe. Why are you not answering? You said you'd be back in town Monday and I know you haven't fallen off the face of the earth! So quit ignoring me and answer me dammit, I need to talk to you, okay? Bye!"

On second thought, why bother calling? She'd drive there. Phoebe wouldn't be able to ignore her if she came knocking on her front door. So what if she was sleeping? Come hell or high water, Phoebe was supposed to be her best friend. God knows she'd been there for Phoebe countless times. Her friend regularly had mental breakdowns over the slightest troubles, especially when she'd still been dating that jerk Gerald back in college.

~/~

Helga sped down the long city streets to Phoebe's suburban townhouse. It was nearly 10 when Helga finally pulled her car into the driveway of Phoebe's house. The radio was playing an annoying Spumoni pop song as arrived and she turned it off in disgust.

Her heavy black brows knit together as she observed her friend's house. All the curtains had been pulled shut and the windows of the townhouse were dark as if nobody were home. Helga had trouble believing Phoebe wasn't there. Phoebe rarely went out on a weekday. The bookworm didn't even have a boyfriend since her messy breakup with Gerald last year. Sure enough when Helga peered into the garage, she saw her friend's blue little Volkswagen parked. 'Geez, Phoebe, if you are going to pretend you're not home, at least hide your car better,' she thought bitterly as she walked up to the front door. and knocked loudly while also pressing at the doorbell.

"Phoebe open up!" Helga shouted, "I know you're in there, it's 10pm on a Monday night and I can see your car! C'mon Pheebs who do you think you're fooling here?!"

Helga knocked on the door again and nearly fell forwards when the door suddenly wung open and a small shadowy figure grabbed her by the arm and pulled her in.

"Shut up and get in!" Phoebe whispered as she slammed the front door shut behind them and locked it with three different locks and bolts.

"Umm Phoebe why are all your lights off and why are you whispering?" Helga asked nervously and felt at her wrist which Phoebe had pulled roughly at a second ago. Phoebe was tiny but no one could deny her fierce karate grip.

Phoebe turned on a small flashlight, barely enough to light their way through the hall. "Just follow me," Phoebe said in an ultra quiet voice.

"O-kay." Helga was starting to think Phoebe lost her mind but followed her friend. Thumper, Phoebe's pet dog, came up to lick her hand as Phoebe opened the door to her basement and ushered Helga in.

"What's going on Phoebe's? Why haven't you returned my calls?"

Phoebe clicked the door shut and finally turned on the lights when they stood in her basement.

Helga gasped when she saw Phoebe's face. Her lips were trembling and her whole face was puffy and red. It was obvious she must have been crying for hours.

"Phoebe what happened?" Helga pulled her friend into a hug.

Phoebe blew her nose and Helga noticed there were tissues all over the floor.

"T-they k-killed Whiskers. After I phoned you on Saturday, s-somebody, somebody," Phoebe sobbed fresh tears, "broke into my home and killed Whiskers!"

"What?!" Helga couldn't believe what she was hearing. Whiskers was Phoebe's cat.

"They killed Whiskers Helga! T-this this is why I didn't want to say anything over the phone!" Phoebe wailed.

Helga tried not to panic though she felt her heartbeat thumping loudly against her chest.

"Slow down Phoebe. Who in their right mind would kill a cat? Surely it must have been an accident, right?"

Phoebe shook her head. Helga could tell that Phoebe was using every ounce of her strength to not have a mental breakdown. "It wasn't an accident. They killed Whiskers. Before it happened, I was threatened Helga!"

"Criminey this is fudged up! Why didn't you tell me?!"

"I tried telling you...but after I told you about Frankie on the phone," Phoebe whimpered and struggled to take a deep breath, "I came back to find Whiskers dead. S-somebody snapped his neck. I thought nobody could trace the call if I called you out of town, from a payphone, but they t-they knew!" Phoebe finally broke down into total chaos. Helga patted her back and waited for Phoebe's sobs to slow down and she could hear her friend breathe normally again.

"Phoebe what are you not saying? You've got me really freaked out here. Who was threatening you?"

Suddenly Phoebe looked up from her tissue and sounded hysterical with fear, "No Helga! I can't tell you! Don't you get it?! If I say anything, anything, they'll come after Thumper next!"

"But who and why are they doing this?! Criminey, you can't just keep quiet and let them have you live in fear! You've got to call the cops or something!"

Phoebe pulled her dog closer to her and stared almost hatefully at Helga, "I'm not risking Thumper's life over this Helga! The cops aren't going to care about protecting a dog!"

"Well, you have to do something, you can't just keep quiet forever Phoebe!" If Phoebe wasn't deep in grief right now Helga would've been tempted to call her friend cowardly.

Phoebe shook her head, "Didn't you see what happened at Pembroke's? My boss was held at gunpoint!"

Helga felt her heart sicken, "You know what happened at Pembroke's don't you? It's related to Rhonda's murder? Isn't it, Phoebe?!"

"Shut up Helga! Just shut up!" Phoebe screeched.

"Why?! Who is even listening now? Nobody's here but you and me, you can tell me!"

"No Helga!" Phoebe snapped, "Whiskers died! He died because I told you something!" She covered her face with her hands and began sobbing again.

"I'm sorry Pheebs! Geez, I didn't know you were being threatened, otherwise I wouldn't have called you," she couldn't help but feel guilty that Whiskers died.

"Well you know now! So I would prefer you pretend you didn't know me. Nothing personal helga but you have a way of drawing trouble to yourself."

Helga opened her mouth in shock, "I do NOT!"

"Helga you always make a scene wherever you go. You have a way of angering people. Even I heard what happened at Rhonda's funeral!"

Now Phoebe was taking it too far. Helga balled her fists, "Yeah, the funeral you didn't even go to! I was trying to uncover what happened to Rhonda but you don't even want to tell me what you know! Some friend of Rhonda's you are! I shouldn't be surprised you're trying to cut me out of your life now too!"

"I'm not trying to cut you out of my life! You're still my best friend Helga! I'm just trying to protect Thumper, I can't risk a-anything h-happening t-tto h-him-" Phoebe began sobbing even louder and held onto Thumper hysterically. The dog wagged its tail and tongue happily, completely oblivious of the dangers it faced.

Helga knew she couldn't change Phoebe's mind. And with Phoebe crying, Helga wasn't sure she wanted to add any more pressure to her high-strung Asian friend. Because what if they did kill Thumper? Then Helga would have both Thumper and Whisker's deaths on her conscience. Then Phoebe might never forgive her.

"Geez, okay. I get it, I'll go," Helga sighed, "I guess I shouldn't call you either right?"

"Just for now. I'm sorry Helga, you're still my friend!" Phoebe dabbed at her red eyes and Thumper licked some of the tears off her face.

Helga laughed emptily, "Sure. Take care Phoebe. Sorry about Whiskers..."

She patted Thumper's head and turned to leave. As Phoebe's front door closed behind her, Helga never felt more empty and alone as she stepped out and got back in her car. First Arnold, now Phoebe. Was the world starting to hate Helga G. Pataki? Because it felt like everyone was turning against her, one by one, like a house of cards.

 **A/N: Does anybody notice a pattern in the death threats that have been going around Hillwood? Trust us, it's only going to get darker. You won't expect who the killer is, and you'll be shocked at some of the things going on in the 'underbelly' of the city. Eventual rated M for a reason. Let's just hope Helga and Arnold can withstand everything that's thrown at them.**


	15. Hillwood Police Station

**Chapter 15: Hillwood Police Station**

Helga bit at her nails nervously and tried to think what to do.

She didn't really want to talk to Sid but she didn't have anyone else to talk to right now. Sid might be the only friend she had left. After what happened to Phoebe, she was also pretty sure that he might be the only who could help her. Though knowing Sid he'd probably think she was hitting on him rather than trying to get professional help. Sure enough Officer Sid, Sid, Sidney, whatever was as flirtatious as ever.

"Helga I'm on the job right now. I can't just drop everything to see you...as much as the thought tempts me," Sid said with a smirk into his phone. He spoke from his desk at the Police Headquarters, staring around at a nearly empty office. Most of his coworkers had shuffled off for the night. Though Sid still had a couple more hours to go before his shift ended.

"Just shut up, Sid," Helga snapped, "You're job is to serve and protect right? Well, I got something you need to hear. Trust me you'll be doing your job."

"If you just want me to do my job, why don't you call 911 like everyone else Helga? Besides you don't sound hurt."

Helga rolled her eyes, "I'm not! It has to do with a friend of mine."

"Which friend?" When Helga didn't answer, Sid added in, "Arnold?"

"Sid where are you? I don't want to say anything more over the phone, okay?" She was speaking from a bloody payphone in case someone tapped her cell. After what happened to Phoebe, Helga knew she had to be more careful.

"Hmmm. This is serious isn't it?"

 _"Y-e-s,"_ Helga said with emphasis hoping he'd get her drift.

Sid seemed to register her concern. "I'm at the station, the one downtown. Do you know where that is?"

"I've lived here my whole life Sid, of course I know where the police station is! I'll be there in a few minutes."

"Good. I'll see you. Larry is the guy who works the front entrance, he's a bit nosy but you don't need to fill out a form or anything he throws at you. Just tell him you're there to see me for a private chat."

"Fine."

"Helga?"

"Yes?"

"Don't wear anything too sexy when you see me, Larry might get the wrong idea."

"UGHHHHHHH!" Helga slammed the phone down with a crash. Why on earth did Sid have to be only guy around who could help her?! Why couldn't Stinky or Brainy have become cops, instead of him. She hadn't seen "Detective" Harold yet but she felt sure Harold and Sid made the most annoying cops ever, they'd only been idiots back in school!

~/~

Helga was quickly ushered through the lobby of the Hillwood Police Station after telling "Larry" she was there to see Sid. Larry was a balding middle aged man who looked like he watched Jeopardy for a fun night. For some reason, Larry didn't even blink an eye when Helga said she was there for Sid but let her straight through after doing a basic security check through her purse.

"You wont find anything there but lipstick pal," Helga scowled as Larry's fat man hands fiddled through her makeup bag.

"Just doing my job, lady."

"Yeah right." Do people really think they'll find stored weapons or drugs in a makeup bag? Helga shook her head at what the world was coming to.

"You're all clear. Sid's on the second floor. Just take the elevator on your right," Larry said boredly. Helga got the feeling that Larry would've used the same tone to tell her her parents had died or that the world was ending. Monotone didn't cover it. The man should work at a funeral home.

"Thanks, L-arry," Helga said his name sarcastically as she grabbed her purse back and went to the elevator.

The elevator was a shiny new silver thing, which stood apart from the rest of the decaying and aged police station. Helga wasn't surprised that Sid didn't sound enthusiastic to spend long hours here. It wasn't exactly like the glamourous, sleek glass and modern, police stations you saw on television shows.

The elevator opened with a pop and Helga found her way around a hallway to a large open area lined with desks and lit by dimmed down fluorescent lights. The whole office was deserted except for one desk where Sid leaned against his chair, shuffling some papers. He was dressed in his blue uniform with his sleeves rolled up, and smiled broadly when he saw her.

"Helga, welcome to the Bat Layer."

"Um, hi… Sid." Helga said an awkward greeting, way too involved in Sid's Olympian physique.

"Are you just going to stand there drooling over me or are you going to come in?" Sid asked smirking at Helga. He chuckled, he was able to make Helga blush far too easily.

"Yea right!" Helga pushed passed Sid and entered his office. "Who would ever be drooling over you Sid?! You're more of a scaredy cat than Eugene!"

"Are you referring to my past panic attacks? Took years of therapy to get that under control. Old Sid could never be in the police force. He'd have an anxiety attack just holding a gun, let alone being shot at." Sid said as he shut the door and locked it behind him.

Well now she felt like a horrible person. How was she supposed to know he had therapy for his anxiety? Geez, he had changed so much from elementary school. Naturally people are usually much different from when they were 7, but this change looked way better on Sid than Helga could've ever imagined.

"Make yourself comfortable." Sid advised

"Thanks. Would you like a drink? We officially have a mini fridge now. Did you want water, Coke, or juice?"

Helga was way more preoccupied at the moment staring at the way his muscles bulged through his uniform. "What?" she yelled

"Water, Coke, or juice?"

"Oh, uh water is fine."

Sid came over and brought the water bottle to her and sat across from Helga at his desk.

"What is up with you anyway? You said you needed to see me. Made it sound so urgent."

The only thing Helga needed urgently was a cold shower. The man looked perfect in his uniform She chugged down some of the water to try and cool herself down. Why was she here anyway? OH! Frankie that's right and to get away from the lying rat, Arnold.

"The shooting at Phoebe's job Sid. Thank God she was out of town when it happened but Phoebe said someone was trying to off her boss."

"He's the best criminal prosecutor in the state; everyone in a Hillside jail cell wants to off him. It isn't the first time someone tried to settle a case outside of the courtroom with him if you know what I mean. Now tell me something I already don't know."

"The number I gave you, Arnold has a connection to Frankie. Did you have a chance to run the number?"

" Stop digging into to this Frankie thing Helga! You can get hurt for snooping the way you are. If you came to talk to me about Frankie or Rhonda or some theory of yours save it. You aren't a detective Helga! And you running around the city defenseless looking for clues like a maniac isn't making my job any easier."

"I am NOT defenseless. I can protect myself!"

"Dammit Helga, I know you want to know who did this and I do too but the mob is out there killing people everyday! Let me risk my life trying to expose the underbelly of the city, you stay out of it. You have no idea what dangers lurk in this city. This isn't PS 118. You cannot just throw a punch and people will stop bothering you. There are people out there who will not hesitate to kill you. Unless you have a badge or you want to end up in a body bag stop it right now!"

"Are you even trying to solve Rhonda's murder?! I have uncovered more clues than you so called 'professionals'. I don't give a damn about what magical evil lurks in Hillwood. Rhonda can't just be forgotten. Did you even care about her?"

"What the hell do you think I do all day, twiddle my fucking thumbs? You think having to go to work everyday and looking at crime scene photos of your friend's brutal murder is fun or easy! You have no idea how much training they don't give you to deal with all the awful things that happen to people. I've found men dismembered limb by limb, seen women who were raped so many times they don't even go outside anymore, people who were beaten so badly their faces didn't even look human anymore. So no, there's no magic involved Helga. This evil is real and violent and murdering people everyday. This isn't a game. This isn't fucking Nancy Drew and you aren't a fucking detective! I will tell you one last time to stop or I will arrest you myself if that means keeping you safe. "

Sid's face was so red. He was pissed. Helga had never seen Sid so angry in her life, she didn't even know what to say. For once in her life Helga was defeated in an argument.

Sid rubbed his face in his hands and groaned, "Listen I'm sorry for yelling at you.. I care about you more than I realized. I promise you that Rhonda will be brought to justice, just let me do my job. I don't know what I'd do if you ended up being the next person murdered with no explanation."

For now since Sid was obviously all worked up she'd tell him she would stop but she knew she wouldn't. Helga sipped her water again. This was a bust. She was getting nowhere except a little hot and bothered with Sid.

"I promise I will stop looking for answers..." Helga tried to make that sound as honest as possible. She had to lighten the mood somehow. "Ever heard the phrase: 'Once burned, twice shy.'?"

"Arnold?"

"Truth is he's been more and more upset with me lately and I think it has something to do with Lila. "

"Tell him you're sorry and be genuine just like you are with me." Sid scratched his head. "God, Arnold's an idiot. If he doesn't step up and see what's in front of him I'll have to make him realize what he's missing."

" Sid we-"

Sid put his finger to Helga's lips, cutting her off. His hands were so soft and so big. You know what they say about big hands? Helga definitely needed to just stop thinking, immediately.

Sid leaned forward and whispered in her ear, "Shhhhh. When you're ready for a real man who can appreciate you for all you are you give me a call again. I can take VERY good care of you if let me Helga." He spoke not in his usual voice but in a low, husky voice. She could feel his body heat, feel his heart beat. Helga's face felt so hot right now, in fact her whole body was hot. That was single-handedly the sexiest thing anyone had ever said to her. Sid's brown eyes penetrated her own. Helga could feel his hot breath on her neck. Her heart was racing a hundred miles per minute. If Sid want her right now then... Oh God, what was he doing to her?

The next moment Sid got up and stretched, then yawned. He was now the same old, jokester Sid Helga always knew. "Now go apologize to Arnold. I have some work to get done."

When was the last time she had an interest in a guy other than Arnold? NEVER. Just breathe Helga, he's Sid the Kid, only far more sexier, sweeter, and perfect in every way. Her frustration had reached a new high as she remembered how Sid's deep voice sounded in her ear, how his touch felt far too good on her lips, how close he was to her, and how she would've liked for him to be even closer.

"Ugggggh!" Helga thought in her head. "Get a grip Pataki! You can't let him get your panties in a bunch."

"Some hideout you got here, Batman. The technology is positively mind-blowing," she snorted as she poked at a rusty file cabinet.

"Hey we like to keep it real! None of that fancy bullshit, we just do solid hands-on police work here. Do you think you can handle that?"

"Um," If that's not innuendo for something creepy, "Yes?"

"Good," Sid clapped his hands together and cleared off some things from his desk, "Anything else you need to tell me? No one got hurt right?"

Helga shook her head and sat on the desk across from him, "It's possible someone was."

She was shocked at how angry Sid became.

"Shit Helga! I better not hear that you've got yourself in trouble again!"

"It's not me who's in trouble! It's Phoebe! And you have to promise not to repeat anything I tell you! She doesn't want anyone to find out in case they come after her again."

" _Again?_ What happened Helga?"

"Someone threatened Phoebe and mutilated her pet cat!"

"Shit. M*****. C***** s***** son of a ****** f**** f****."

Sid swore a string of curse words. If the situation wasn't so serious, Helga would've blushed at some of the more outrageous curses he used.

"So I take it from your reaction that you've heard of something like this before?" Helga asked.

Sid's eyes stared right into her own but didn't answer her question, "This isn't good. Let me guess someone's trying to silence Phoebe?"

"Yes! Phoebe didn't even want to tell me anything and I'm her best friend and we were alone in her basement! She was that frightened. How did you know?"

Sid merely shook his head, "I wish I didn't know..." His voice sounded far off.

"What is that supposed to mean? Does this have something to do with Rhonda?"

She was surprised when Sid suddenly got up and placed his hands were on either side of the desk she was sitting on. Helga was not a weakling, she was strong and tall for a girl but suddenly she felt very small and weak with Sid's much stronger, muscular body leaning over her.

"Do you really think I'm going to sit here and tell you classified information about an ongoing case Helga? Didn't I JUST tell you to stop trying to get involved! How many times do I have to tell you? What happened to Phoebe is exactly the type of shit I've been trying to warn you of. There are sick people out there and I don't want a thing like this happening to you next!"

He was so close to her that she could see into the dark pools of his brown eyes.

Helga gulped, "Um you can calm down Sid, I promise nothing will happen to me...I don't even have a cat, I swear."

A faint smirk threatened to appear on Sid's otherwise grave demeanour. "That's not even funny Helga. These people don't give a shit what it is: cat, rabbit, human. They'll kill anything you love if it keeps you quiet and in their control..." his voice became lower, "I wonder..."

"What?"

"I wonder what it is you hold dear that someone could use against you."

Helga felt her face flame red. "I don't know Sid. I don't really care about anything. Or anyone." she quickly added.

"I don't believe you. Everyone cares about something. You are not inhuman, everyone has weaknesses."

"Believe me," she stammered, "I can't even stand my family. I barely talk to them."

"Maybe not your family then..."

Helga couldn't stand the way Sid was looking at her eyes anymore, as if he was trying to read her soul. She pushed him away from her and slid off the desk, something she should've done a minute ago instead of letting him lean over her like that.

"Listen Sid, I don't see what this has to with anything. It's not me who was threatened!"

Sid shrugged his shoulders, "I can't help it. When you're a detective, you try to see how things might play out ahead of time. In case you were threatened."

"Well I'm not!" Helga crossed her arms.

"Dammit Helga. You will be, if you continue the way you're going. I know you haven't forgotten the case for a minute, you're too stubborn to listen to me. So you better think very hard of what they might come after, because you just might lose it if you continue."

Helga's heart was beating with a mixture of adrenaline and fear. Would they really come after her next? She didn't even know anything like Phoebe. And she didn't even have any pets or people close to her. Who would they try to target if they came after her?

She was about to ask Sid another question when she was interrupted by a nasally monotone voice behind her. Larry. Suddenly Helga was very reminded of another annoying breathe-down-your neck pest and she had to resist the urge to punch the guy.

"Sorry to interrupt," Larry said boredly and cleared his throat.

Sid winced as he moved away from Helga to face his colleague. "What do you want Larry? Couldn't you have just paged me?"

The older man shrugged, "It's actually the lady," he pointed at Helga, "I came to talk to."

"Me?" "Her?" Helga and Sid said at the same time.

"Yes, are you the owner of a pink 2009 Prius?" Larry said.

"Um, yeah? Why?"

"You're car has been towed away, lady." Larry said in a tone that showed he couldn't care less if her car had just been abducted by aliens.

"Are you freakin kidding me?!" Helga screeched. How was she supposed to get to work tomorrow? How was she supposed to get home?

Sid laid a reassuring hand on her shoulder before turning angrily to his colleague, "Larry please don't tell me you just let someone tow her car away?"

Larry barely blinked. "She was parked in a police-only spot, Officer Frank had no choice when he found a car parked in the reserved area."

Helga felt like punching Larry in the fat gut but decided against assaulting a police officer. Especially right in front of Sid. And in a police station.

"Great job, idiot. You could've just told Frank that she was my visitor!" Sid said and Helga felt glad he called Larry an idiot.

"She didn't fill out the correct forms, when she arrived. So she didn't have a visitor's pass or sticker," Larry said dryly.

Helga held her face in her hands and groaned. This day just couldn't get worse could it!

"What the hell am I going to do without a car?!"

"Don't worry about it," Sid said, "I'll drive you."

"What? In your cop car?"

Sid smiled, "I have another car besides a cop car, Helga."

Oh god.

 **A/N: What do you think of this chapter?**


	16. Joy Ride

**Chapter 16: Joy Ride**

Helga was surprised that Sid drove a decent a car, but his driving on the other hand was less than decent. Sid was speeding down the road, cutting people off, and even running red lights. When Helga drove she was always cautious and at least obeyed the normal traffic laws. She did often have road rage but Sid took it to a new level.

"Get off the road if you can't drive! Geez, my grandpa blindfolded can drive better than him!" Sid had just cut some guy off for being too slow in front of him, so he went around the guy, cut him off, and got upset when he got angrily honked at.

"Can you slow down? Are you trying to kill me? I can barely breath!" Helga was nearly sore from the whiplash. Sid made all kinds of crazy turns without even slowing down or putting on his signal. How he managed to get into was unknown to her.

Sid noticeably lifted his foot from the gas and the car slowed some. Thank God there was a red light so Helga could open the window and get some air.

"Sorry Helga. I thought you'd be able to handle a ride with me," Sid said staring attentively at the road. Helga coughed at the double meaning of that statement.

"You okay? Need some water or something?"

"N-no," Helga could feel her face heat up. "I'm just having trouble breathing due to your horrible driving skills. Who taught you to drive? Ray Charles?"

"Sorry. I'm used to driving in the cruiser you know during emergencies and stuff. It's a habit."

"You could at least obey the traffic laws. You're a cop. That doesn't make you immune to the law."

"Ha. That's what you think. We sometimes turn our sirens on just to get through red lights. Don't tell anyone though. Have the maintain our integrity," Sid spoke as he made a left hand turn. "So where is it that I'm taking you? I've never actually been to your apartment."

"It's pretty close."

"Sure you want to go home? I'm basically off the clock. Harold has a poker game at his house every Friday night with a few other guys from the force. I'm sure he wouldn't mind you tagging along."

Well this would suck for them, Helga was a regular card shark.

~/~

Arnold had arrived early at the fancy restaurant Lila recommended for them. He was anxious, not just from the date, but from the last fight he and Helga had. It seemed like things were just turning to complete chaos at home. The sight of Lila walking in in a skin tight black lace dress helped take Arnold's mind off of things.

"Hello Lila," Arnold greeted Lila as she sat down in her seat.

"Hello Arnold. You look ever so handsome." Lila batting her eyelashes at him was enough to make him skirm in his seat.

"Thanks you look very Beautiful. I was surprised you called me tonight."

""I figured you'd be ever so bored at home. Besides, I wanted to see you. How's the job search going?"

"It's going. I'm thinking of applying to that new club, Tenderloins downtown as a bartender. I'm sure it'll pay more than my current situation."

"I'm happy for you! How's Helga doing?"

"Um, can we not talk about Helga? You always seem to want to talk about her. Why is that?"

"I'm sorry. I just wanted to make sure she's okay. You said she was a little off. I just want to make sure she's stable Arnold."

"For some reason I don't believe that, but I'll take your word for it. I've been meaning to ask how long have you been working for Eugene? It just seems odd you ended up working for one of our classmates, especially considering you two never really talked."

"Um, well Eugene and I just connected in an ever so special way that's all."

Arnold smelled bullshit for some reason but nonetheless smiled and continued making small talk. She definitely was hiding something.

"Right, so what exactly was this 'special' connection? If there's another guy let me know."

"Oh no Arnold. I'm only dating you. Eugene has just been so nice to me. He's ever so dear to me. His company is the BEST in the entire city. I have a lot of faith in him that's all, Arnold."

Something about Lila's answer made him feel uncomfortable, but this was a date with a beautiful woman after all. He decided to let the comments about Eugene slide. He owed him a visit anyway. Right now though Lila was his main focus.

~/~

"Ha you losersssss. Who took the whole pot? ME. Helga G Pataki! I murdered you guys!"

"Can we not talk about murder?" Harold was obviously annoyed. He took a large bite out of his 10th slice of pizza that night and slammed his cards on the table. "Why'd Sid invite this girl anyway? She's been winning all of the pots for the past 3 games."

Helga had won $350 from the guys so far and was basking in her winning. The guys underestimated her, but no one underestimates Helga Pataki without getting their asses handed to them.

"I reckon you sure have a killer poker face, Helga. This really bites!" Stinky was still the same old Southern belle he was in elementary school. The only that changed is that maybe he had gotten a couple feet taller. He was certainly the tallest here at over 6 feet tall. "I'm out for the night gentlemen and lady. I have to get back to the farm. I have lemon pudding waiting for me."

Stinky, being a true country boy, lived and remain on his family's farm in the county. He actually made a bit of profit around October from his personal pumpkin farm, but other than that Sid spent his time in music studios, recording country music. He even had his own radio show that came on in the mornings, where he gave verbal manifestos about lemon pudding and social issues. It was actually pretty entertaining.

Stinky took his leave, leaving Harold, Sid, and Helga to the game.

"What is up with that guy and lemon pudding? I thought that was a phase." Harold said as he dealt a new hand.

"Same thing that's still forcing you to eat everything in sight genius," Helga put down one card. "I'm in. I bet $45. "

"I see you haven't changed. I can imagine the men love an abrasive chick," Harold joked.

Sid jabbed Harold in the side, "Put your money where your mouth is Harold. Are you calling or folding?"

"Fiiiine. I match Helga's bet. Call." Harold threw his chips in the center of the table.

"Same." Sid followed suit.

"You guys are really partners. Two chumps who just got their asses whipped. I got a royal flush! Suck it!" Helga revealed her hand, much to the boys disappointment. They both threw their cards on the table in annoyance.

"I'm really tired of losing. You know who's a beast at Poker. Eugene! I can never tell his clumsiness from actual clumsiness. We have got to get him in on this game. He could take even you out in Poker, Helga."

Helga cringed at mere mention of his name, "Really? Let the murderer into your home. Real smart. I'm sure you also believe Rhonda was a druggie."

Harold responded piling up the cards, "She WAS a druggie. I dated her for three years. She used to take Xanax everyday just to get to school. I'm not surprised. You guys didn't get to know her like I did. There were cracks underneath that pretty face."

"Criminy! That doesn't mean she was addicted to sleeping pills. Eugene put that out there to cover his own image."

"Guys, can we get to the-"

Harold interrupted her, "She WAS whether you believe it or not. I caught her downtown with her dealer once. I would've arrested her if Eugene didn't threaten me," Harold yelled and flipped the table over. "If she would've stayed with me maybe she'd still be alive."

Helga and Sid stared in silence and disbelief.

Sid was the first to speak, "Harold, man calm down. We talked about this. It's not your fault."

"Just get out! Both of you!"

"Har-"

"LEAVE!" Harold kicked over the pizza box and then punch the wall, leaving a hole.

"If you don't calm down I will hit you with the tazer Harold. Let's not start this fight." As soon as Sid saw the hole in the wall he just up immediately in defense. He reached down towards his belt instinctively.

"Do it then Sidney! I dare you." Harold stepped over to Sid and stood less than a foot away from him. Harold was twice Sid's size but Sid didn't even flinch when the larger man puffed his chest out in front of him. He slipped the tazer from his belt and put it right up against Harold's broad chest. Sid had ample opportunity to do damage but he didn't. He stood there like a statue. "That's what I thought. Leave and take Helga with you."

"Helga, let's go," Sid said in a serious tone. Helga followed suit and walked with Sid out of Harold's home.

The car was absolutely silent. The way Sid gripped the wheel signalled to Helga that he was very upset.

"I'm sorry about that. He's not usually like that. Ever since he heard about Rhonda he's been a little edgey. I didn't know he was going to act like that."

"You should have tazed him. I would've."

"I would've if he swung at me or posed more of a threat. I knew he wasn't. He's my partner. I trust him with my life. I know when he just needs a reality check and some space." Sid stopped at a red light and glanced over at Helga. "Do me a favor and stop running your mouth so much, okay? You aren't invincible like you think and you need to learn to pick your battles wisely."

Helga was silent. She was never going to promise to stop running her mouth or speaking what she believed to be the truth.

"I need a drink," Sid said breaking the silence. Helga nodded in agreement. She needed a thousand drinks after tonight.

 **Author's Note: Any thoughts?**


	17. Choices

**Chapter 17: Choices**

 **On the other side of town…**

A beautiful woman had just arrived home from her day at work. She was an assistant to the top lawyer at Pembroke's and things were going well for her. As she put the key in the door she let her hair down from its bun and shook it out. It felt good to let her hair down after a long day.

The darkness from her home wasn't out of the ordinary. She often spent long nights at the office with her boss so she was used to getting home late. What was unusual was that her German Sheppard, Bess didn't meet her at the door like she usually did to greet her. She threw off her heels next to the door and hit the lights. Something didn't feel right.

"Beeeeeeess! Momma's home," she yelled as she hit the corner and turned into the kitchen. She eyed her water bowl and saw it was still full. She hadn't left her outside again had she?

"Bess," he called again starting to get worried. She ran upstairs to the bedroom. Sometimes she liked to curled up under her bed and sleep there. When she arrived in her bedroom she was in for a rude awakening.

The bedroom door was slightly ajar, which was strange because she always closed it. When she pressed the door open she was met with a gruesome scene. There was blood smeared on the walls and a pool of blood right by the foot of her bed. She was shaking as she followed the blood trail into her adjoining bathroom. There was her beloved dog Bess dead in her white bathtub.

"OH MY GOD!"

Her neck had been snapped and sliced open so she died in absolute agony. The woman kneeled over the bathtub with tears running down her face. Blood was now smeared on her dainty hands.

"Hello Patricia!" A deep voice came from behind her and she jumped.

"Did you do this? Oh my god! Who are you? What do you want?"

"You work for Frankie now? We've been waiting here all day for you. Your dog wasn't very welcoming unfortunately."

"I-I don't know anything. I just work at the firm with him. You already took my dog. Please just leave!"

"Oh, I'm so sorry. We can't do that. We know you discovered some questionable files. You know far too much and now you have to go!"

The figure descended upon the defenseless girl. It was all over before she could even let out a scream.

~/~

They ended up heading back to his apartment. Helga didn't want to go home just yet and considering her car was just towed she wouldn't be able to drive herself home anyway. As soon as Sid opened the door helga shoved passed him and plopped down on his couch.

"Well hello to you too Helga. How was your day Sid? Oh THANKS for asking Helga! My day was long and dangerous like usual." Sid joked, joining her on the couch. He was such an ass. Helga only rolled her eyes at that statement.

"You have any booze Sid? I need a stiff one."

"You know as a cop I can't give alcohol to a _minor_." Sid joked again flashing her a smile.

"Jesus Sid I am 24 years old! I'm a big girl and can handle my liquor!"

Sid stood up and headed to the kitchen. He pulled the bottle of Fireball Whiskey from the freezer and filled two glasses with ice.

"I was joking. I'm well aware of your age Helga. You showed me your license when I pulled you over remember," Sid filled up one glass to the brim with whiskey and stopped before he filled the second, "Do you want a chaser with this whiskey? It tastes good with apple juice like apple pie."

"Just fill it with whiskey. What do you think? I am some little sissy girl? I am Helga G. Pataki and I can out drink even you Officer Sid!"

"As fun as getting plastered with you would be that's not the best idea," Sid walked back over to the couch and handed her the drink, "What's going on though? You rushed over here. Is there a problem? Did someone try to hurt you?"

Helga took a gulp of her drink. The burn felt satisfying as the cold liquid went down her throat. She needed this, after the long week she's had. Helga had never been much of drink due to her mother's alcoholism but in college she drank quite a lot due to stress. She builded up quite a tolerance in college and was surprised after all this time she wasn't tipsy from just the one glass.

"Arnold's being a total jerk. He quit his job without telling me. Now I have to pick up the slack for the rent. He's so stuck up Lila's perfect ass he won't believe anything I try to tell him. I want to move out. That'll teach him to skip out on the rent ever again."

"Helga, come on you don't have to be all tough with me. He hurt you. Its okay if you open up." Sid put his glass down and wrapped his arm around Helga's shoulder. He allowed her to rest her head on own shoulder. Helga immediately felt at ease.

"I'm tired of arguing with him, Sid. I can't believe he's choosing _her_ when we've been friends since we were kids. He thinks I'm crazy. Hell, maybe he's right."

"You aren't crazy. He's the crazy one." Sid consoled,bringing her head to his chest. Helga's mouth went dry. She reached for her drink and took another large gulp.

"Is Harold going to be okay? You guys are still going to be partners, right? I remember when you, him, and Stinky would get in all kinds of trouble at PS 118." She didn't add outloud that she thought they were all idiots, especially Harold.

"He'll be fine. He's still fat though," Sid said.

Helga made a confused face. Harold was twice the size of Sid in muscle mass alone. Fat was nowhere in sight for him. At least that's what he looked like on her television screen. The camera did tend to add weight to a person though. Maybe Harold wasn't as bulky as he looked.

"He may be buff and built like a bodybuilder on the outside but he's still the same fat, insecure kid. He has a stash of Mr. Fudgy Bars in the cruiser and by stash I mean the cases you buy from a bulk store. I can't complain though. One thing that HAS changed is his loyalty. He's not the same backstabbing bully he used to be. I can honestly say, I trust Harold with my life when we're on duty."

"It's good to have people you can trust. I can't even trust my own roommate."

"You can always trust me." He whispered into her ear. There eyes locked in a moment of silence. Sid tilted Helga's head up and crashed his lips onto hers. At first Helga was tense, but Sid's hands on her back made her relax. Their lips moved against each others in desperation and in need.

Criminy, Sid was kissing her. Sid, the Kid was kissing her and she didn't hate it. Somehow though it still felt weird, like kissing an old friend and not knowing that it was them at the time.

Sid pulled back and cleared his throat, "I'm sorry if that was too forward. We, you don't have to do anything you don't want to."

Right now she wasn't sure what she wanted, but she took a chance and kissed Sid once again and was able forgot about everything. She became lost in his arms as nothing else began to matter, not Arnold, not Phoebe, not even Rhonda's murder. All that mattered was what felt right in the moment and for now that was Sid.

 **Author's Note: Things are heating up. Any thoughts?**


	18. The Morning After

**Chapter 18: The Morning After**

Helga woke up the next morning in a bed that wasn't hers. She opened her eyes, it was just daybreak outside. She surveyed the room and then she suddenly remembered. Criminy, Sid! Speak of the devil, as soon as Helga thought that to herself Sid came out of bathroom shirtless with a towel wrapped around his waist. Oh no. Oh crap! She hoped she didn't give her lady parts up to Sid, the Kid! She wasn't even sure if he wasn't gross! No. No. No. No.

She let out a deep sigh. Things were moving too fast she felt. She wasn't even sure about him yet but she didn't mind kissing him. Hell, her hormones liked the kiss. Obviously a little too much. Helga ran a hand through her hair. It was tangled and messy and all over the place. Very reminiscent of sex hair. She sniffed her shirt. It even smelled like Sid's cologne.

"Oh God, we didn't. Did we?" Helga asked flustered.

"No Helga, we didn't. We spent the night talking and you fell asleep. I didn't want to wake you and I figured the bed would be much more comfortable than my couch. We didn't even sleep in the same room. I took the couch."

"Oh Thank God!" Helga sighed in relief.

"Oh thanks. Good to know I'm ugly," Sid exclaimed, "I'm going to get into the shower. I have to be at the station in a couple hours. Go back to sleep Beautiful."

Sid flashed her a smile before shutting the bathroom door.

After her mini heart attack she didn't want to awkwardly wait for Sid to exit the shower. She could check her work email or something productive. Sid wouldn't mind. She grabbed his laptop from the night stand, opened it, and to her surprise it was already on. When she opened it a screen that read Hillside Police Department Records. His username and password were still typed in. She couldn't could she? Technically she was breaking the law, but this could be the only time she could get concrete evidence. She hit the login button, glancing at the bathroom door to make sure Sid wasn't going to catch her. If memory served her correct he was a total germaphobe when they were younger. He'd be another 20 minutes in the shower at least.

Once logged in to Sid's account a log of only his notes came in.

 _Friday 12:44 AM: Shooting at Pembroke's Law Firm. All officers on call. Minor shot out. I received a small injury but no hospitalization needed. Assailant escaped but it is evident that Frankie George himself was the target. Possible revenge motivated? George stated on record he did not see the face of the person and he only was held at gunpoint for a few moments before we came._

 _Saturday 3:04 PM: Thorough search of Room 1214 conducted by my partner Berman and I. Search results are inconclusive. Prints came back clean with only Ms. Lloyd's coming up as the only hit in the room._

 _Saturday 5:03PM: Monitoring Eugene Horowitz again. He's a wreck. He can't even hold a cup without shaking. Still evidence of trauma from Ms. Lloyd's death. I'm still suspicious. He leaves his house everyday at 5:32PM on the dot. He and his assistant drive in two separate cars to a disclosed destination I have not discovered yet. Partner and I will swap monitoring duty every other day._

 _Sunday 12:11PM: Another sweep done for Room 1214. Results inconclusive._

 _Monday 1:04 PM: Search inconclusive._

 _Tuesday 12:30PM: Search inconclusive once again_

 _Tuesday 4:45 PM: Suspicious of Horowitz' assistant. Did a background check on her and her records have been wiped from the system. Who did she know that's high enough to clean her records? Will monitor her more. Once again at 5:32 they leave in separate cars._

 _Wednesday 2:31PM: Search of room 1214 successful. Discovered under a dresser and hidden under carpet. New evidence obtained, documented and brought into the station. Rhonda's prints on inside and outside of envelope. Inside the envelop were 4 items which have been documented._

 _One note on an index card written in Rhonda's handwriting simply stating: **Black as the devil, hot as hell, pure as an angel, sweet as love.** Obviously significant. Must research further. _

_One report from DNA Diagnostic, siting a **Non-Invasive Prenatal Paternity test** was performed at 9 weeks and ordered by Ms. Angelica White, possible pseudonym of Rhonda. Conclusion: In the case of the unborn fetus it is determined by DNA Diagnostics that Eugene Horowitz is excluded from being the biological father._

 _One copy of the Horowitz Inc statement of income from August 3, 2003- December 8, 2005. Must flag and cooperate with the IRS but it seems to not check out as far as numbers._

 _One dated and signed statement of protection against Frankie G. Xeroxed on the back of the document is the contract agreeing to marriage between Eugene and Lila. Noted: Signatures provided by Rhonda do not match between documents. One document has obviously been falsely forged._

Holy crap! This vital information! Rhonda's baby wasn't Eugene's. Horowitz' company has shady finances. Ambiguous quote AND forged legal documents. Rhonda must have been in pretty deep. Helga needed to track down this Frankie G.

"Helga," Sid startled her and caused her to jump as he came out of the shower with a towel around his waist. "What are you doing on my computer?

Helga quickly pulled up Facebook and logged out of his police account.

"Oh nothing Sidney. Just checking my Facebook page. Got bored with you basking in the shower for 40 minutes," Helga retorted flipping her bang from her eyes. She slammed his laptop shut and placed it back on the night stand.

"Next time please ask. There's confidential things on there. I could lose my job if information was leaked on my end. Anyway, I like being clean," Sid declared. He picked up a hair brush from his dresser and brushed his hair back gently. His chest was still glistening from his shower and the steam travelled out of the bathroom into the bedroom. Why was he so distracting?

"Yea so clean you wore a full germ suit to school for two days!"

"To this day I still don't like germs. If I investigate a gritty crime scene I shower for 40 minutes when I come home. I obsessively put on hand sanitizer. It's not nearly as bad as it was."

"Oh."

"If you want to hop in the shower you can while I get dressed. I'll drop you off at work if you want. I know you don't want to go home right now anyway."

"Thanks Sid."

"Take your time. Not in a rush to get to the department meeting today. Throw your clothes out here before you get in and I'll wash them for you. Clean towels and wash clothes are in there. I, um don't know what you like but I have my body wash you can use."

"Body wash? What are you, a fruitcake?" Helga joked getting out of the bed.

Helga walked into the bathroom and shut the door behind her. Before she even stripped her clothes she already felt naked enough. What was it about Sid that made her feel so...not like herself? She never spent the night at a guy's house before. If she counted that one time she broke into the boarding house and climbed in the vents all night then she had once.

She let her clothes fall to the floor then threw her clothes out through the small cracked opening in the door. She stepped into the shower, still warm from Sid's time in there. She turned the water on extra hot. For some reason she felt so filthy and needed to feel the heat. She wet her wash cloth and squirted some of Sid's body wash on it. She sniffed and inhaled deeply. God, it smelled him. She began to lather herself in the soapy bubbles. Now she was going to smell like him all day now. As she let the warm water fall over her shoulders she was both hopeful and nervous for today to begin. She was going to track Frankie G down if that was the last thing she was able to do. Her body relaxed under the water, unfortunately the water couldn't wash away all her troubles.

~/~

Skyscrapers definitely looked a whole lot bigger from close up. Horowitz Inc. looked like a massive maze from the outside. Arnold stepped inside and gawked at the amount of people just in the lobby alone. There had to have been at least 100 people on this floor alone. He gulped, somewhat nervous from all the people. And he thought the club was packed during his work nights! This was nothing.

He walked over to the front desk and greeted the perky blonde sitting there with an inviting smile.

"Welcome to Horowitz Inc., where everyone can be born lucky. I'm Cecile, what can I help you with?"

"Um. I need to see Eugene. Is he here?"

Cecile seemed to think Arnold's question was quite funny because she gave a loud laugh right in front of his face.

"What's so funny?" Arnold asked curiously.

"Oh sir Mr. Horowitz is VERY busy. He isn't going to stop doing business for you. Now if you want we can make an appointment." She flipped through an extremely thick book, "Is April 15, 2045 good for you? That's his next opening."

Was this girl serious? He had to wait THIRTY years to have a meeting with his friend. This was ridiculous.

"Listen, can't you just call him or something? Tell him Arnold Shortman is here to see him. He knows me. We went to elementary school together."

Cecile rolled her eyes, "Okaaaaay but he probably won't see you. If I had a dollar for every time someone claimed they went to school with Mr. Horowitz I swear I'd be rich." She then picked up her phone and dialed the number. "Hello Mr. Horowitz. I have a err… Arnold Shortman here to see you. He claims he went to elementary school with you. Should I send him away?"

Apparently Eugene had hung up on her and didn't even answer the question. Arnold could hear the dial tone from the receiver.

"I told you he isn't going -

Before Cecile could get her snarky sentence out there was Eugene Horowitz coming out of one of the four elevators. He looked… good. No longer did he resemble the timid and defenseless kid. He actually had muscles and was tall. Even his red hair was slicked back and not wild like it used to be. His suit was neat and his designer shoes looked freshly shined that morning. He clearly spent a lot of time on his physical appearance. Something that Arnold couldn't see himself doing. Money had done him well. How could a guy who had such bad luck in the past, get this lucky?

Eugene came up and gave Arnold a nice bear hug, "Arnold, my man! I haven't seen you since the funeral. What brings you here?"

The hug surprised him because even he and Gerald didn't hug and they were best friends. The hug lasted far too long and Eugene was holding on just a little bit too close for his comfort. Arnold wiggled out of the hug faster than he could even blink.

"Hehe hello Eugene. I came to talk to you. Can we go to your office or something?"

"Of course, of course. Anything for my old friend Arnold." Eugene said placing a hand on Arnold's shoulder. He shrugged it off and made sure he didn't walk so close next to Eugene. His touchy-feeliness made him feel weird. Frankly, he didn't want Eugene to touch him again. Ever.

The duo made their way to the elevator. Arnold didn't really know what to say to Eugene. What was he supposed to say: "Oh you look good for a guy who lost his girlfriend." or maybe "Hey, I'm dating your right hand woman and I'd love to know if I should be suspicious of her" or "Hey, stop touching me I don't like that and it;s weird". The answer was none of the above.

"You have a nice place here. Lots of people and a big building." Arnold spoke as the number 58 lit up above the door.

"We have over 3000 employees here going in and out everyday. It's a pretty normal day."

The elevator stopped and the doors flung open. Arnold trailed behind Eugene and he lead him to his office. Eugene shut the door behind them.

"Your office is huge! It's the size of entire apartment. How'd you get so wealthy?"

"I'm Jewish, Arnold. I'm naturally good with money," Eugene laughed at his own joke and then continued speaking. "So what is it that you need?"

"First of all I'm sorry about interrupting your business. I know it may seem weird but I wanted to ask you about Lila. If you don't know we've been dating and she said some things about you that I just can't shake."

"She's only my secretary if that's the issue. Lila definitely isn't my type Arnold." Eugene seemed to be telling the truth. A question seemed to pop up in his mind: What exactly was Eugene's type then if Lila wasn't his type? Now that he thought about it he was a little shocked to find out he and Rhonda had been together because he had never seen Eugene with a girl before, even in high school. Maybe, he was just a late bloomer.

"No, no it's nothing like that. She just said you two had a 'special relationship'. I just want to know if -"

Eugene interrupted, "If she's crazy? She's just extremely faithful to the company and not to mention very nice. She believed in me and this company when no one else did and remained loyal to me. We do have a special connection but it's a business one. I give you my word."

Arnold was actually going to say "if she's seeing anyone else", but Eugene seemed to think he was going to ask something in a total different direction. Someone usually insinuating that another person was crazy was usually meant they had seen the crazy firsthand.

"Right," Somehow both him and Lila had the same forced and vague story. Something was going on with them that didn't seem authentic in the slightest. Arnold just nodded, hoping Eugene wouldn't see the skepticism on his face. "I also want to apologize for how Helga acted at the funeral party. She's really sorry."

Eugene replied,"No worries. Just keep her away from me. You on the other hand are welcome to come see me anytime."

Something about the way Eugene said that last sentence made Arnold cringe. Something was off with both him and Lila. Everything was way too perfect and way too rehearsed for him. Maybe Helga was right.

"Thanks for easing my mind about Lila. I don't want to keep you from your job." Arnold stood up to leave. "I'm really sorry about Rhonda and the baby Eugene."

"Yea, me too," Eugene responded coldly while biting his lip.

Arnold felt the weight roll off his shoulders. Now that he was away from Eugene's watchful eye he had to talk to Helga soon.

 **Author's Note: What do you guys think?**


	19. Apologizes

**Chapter 19: Apologies**

Helga was dropped off by Sid at work at 9:30. Business was already under way when she went to her office and shut the door. She settled into her desk and began working. Her job bored her to death but at least she still had one, unlike some people. She spent the next few hours editing a book which didn't require too much of energy before lunch time. Her stomach growled around 11 but she was just going to make a sandwich in the community kitchen or something. She continued typing, determined to finish this project by 1. She was startled when a knock came upon her office door. She turned and almost screamed in annoyance when she saw who it was. Arnoldo. Ugh, she didn't want to see him at all.

"What are you doing here? You can't just show up to my job Arnold. I'm doing actual work here."

"You didn't come home last night. I was worried and plus I want to take you out to lunch."

Lunch? What were they high school girlfriends?

"My car got towed if you must know. I spent the night at Sid's. I'm not very hungry Arnold so if you could leave that'd be great."

"Not going to happen. Come on Helga. You need to eat, let's go to that burger joint we used to go to when we were kids. My treat."

"Slausen's?"

It was true Helga had a real soft spot for their onion rings. There was nothing like them in town. She did have an odd craving from some greasy food but that didn't mean her and Arnold would be cool again.

"Yes, let's go."

"Fine, I'll let my boss know I'm taking lunch."

~\\\~

The salt in the water could be smelled in the air, which seemed to be thick and humid. The river that ran near the outskirts of Hillwood held many secrets. Some of which were needed to be discovered today by Detective Berman and Officer Sid. They had received an anonymous tip last night about two men carrying what looked like something roughly the size of a human body to the river side.

It seemed like an easy case. Get the dogs out there and a team and dig for bodies while the diver teams scanned the river. For Sid though it was the worst possible place for him to be. The mud and dirt near the riverbanks repulsed him more than the idea of dead bodies being underneath it. For lack of better words he was freaking out and his partner's patience seemed to be wearing thin. He wouldn't even get out of the police car.

"Jesus, Sid you cannot stay in the car every time we have to dig for a body! You'll be fine. You can take a shower at the station if the germs really bother you."

Sid frantically searched his glove compartment. "No way. I can feel them crawling on me right now. Where's my hand sanitizer?!"

"You are a grown man. A grown fucking man. Get out of the damn car before I drag you out. We have work to do. You can't check out."

"Easy for you to say when you can't start morning patrols without a Mr Fudgey Bar fat ass!"

"Oh I've had it!" Harold grabbed Sid by his collar and dragged him out of the car behind the yellow tape. There was at least a six foot by ten foot hole in the ground now. All the rest of the team was busy searching while Sid was having a panic attack on the ground. He wouldn't even let go of Harold's leg.

"Sid stop! This is embarrassing in front of all our colleagues. Get over the damn dirt and stop being a pussy!" Harold kicked the ground and some of the dust came and settled in Sid's face. Harold had to admit he sort of did that on purpose. He wasn't fat, at least not anymore.

Sid let out a shriek that would rival even a cat's and retreated back to the car in near tears. Harold only rubbed his temples in annoyance at his partner's behavior. At this moment everyone was looking strangely at him.

"I apologize, my partner isn't feeling like himself today."

At least when they searched areas like this one by themselves Harold could do the messy stuff and Sid could watch without anyone knowing. Everyone had just seen his partner's sudden panic attack and were bound to judge them both at the station.

"Detective Berman. We found a body!"

That was music to Harold's ears.

~/~

Helga and Arnold settled down into their booth and ordered. Two burgers, a basket of fries, and two extra chocolatey milkshakes with cherries on top. They obviously had no concept of a diet. If Rhonda were alive she'd probably scoff at Helga and toss her food on the floor. God was she annoying but she had her moments. She could imagine Rhonda right now, filing her nails and drinking her expensive Artesian water in a burger joint. She was never one to follow the crowd anyway.

Arnold gave Helga a soft smirk as she looked up. It was more than a little awkward between them. She wasn't ready to talk to him yet.

"How's work going Helga," Arnold asked breaking the silence. He wanted to make small talk. Helga hated small talk.

"Boring as ever. Can we cut the chit chat and get to the meat? What do you want?"

"I'm sorry Helga. I'm sorry for arguing with you. I hate it. I just want to move forward with you Helga." Arnold put his hand on Helga's, causing Helga to snatch her hand away.

"I don't know what con you're playing but I don't want to hear it, as long as Lila is around I don't trust you. She makes your brain turn to mush."

"Well lucky for you I don't trust her either. Something's weird with her and Eugene and I want to find out what."

"So you finally see the dark side of things. What are you going to do? Play spy? Will you be willingly sleeping with the enemy?"

"I don't trust her but that doesn't mean I still don't like her. I'm still dating her but I'm just interesting in figuring out what's going on between her and Eugene. I went to see him. Everything seems so forced then when I asked him about Lila it got odd."

"Jealous much?"

"Lila isn't his type."

"That's because Eugene is gay as a unicorn."

Arnold got flashbacks to Eugene constantly touching him.

"Helga, stop! We used to joke about that in high school but he's not. I know he had some tendencies but for Christ's sake he got Rhonda pregnant. He's straight."

"Then why was he trying to cover up that the baby wasn't his!"

"And how would you know that?"

"I have a source."

"A source? By source you mean Sid? If you don't mind me asking what's going on with you two anyway? I need to know if I'll be asked to spend the night somewhere else one night to give you guys privacy."

"Sid and I are whatever you and Lila are, Arnoldo." Silence set in for a moment. "Who's Frankie G. Arnold?"

"First of all, I was never doing anything with Rhonda. That night she came to bar hysterical. She said she needed help and that I was the only good guy she knew. I served her a couple drinks and she told me she needed help suing someone. I gave her Frankie G's number. He's a lawyer down at Pembroke's. You remember Frankie G. The cool guy who used to ride around on his bike all the time."

"He was a wannabe gangster. That's what he was. He grew up to be a lawyer. That's insane. Do you know if he ever met with Rhonda?"

"No, not at all. I never saw her after that night at the bar."

"Great, got to go Arnold." Helga rushed up and grabbed her bag.

"Where are you going? I thought we were having lunch!"

"I have to go see Phoebe at work. See you later Football Head."

Thank God she still remembered which train to catch downtown. She needed to get her car back soon otherwise she'd be walking everywhere. The law firm was extremely quiet. The only sound that could be heard was the sound of Phoebe typing at the front desk.

"Helga, what are you doing here?"

"I, um I'm having some legal trouble Pheebs. I need to talk to Frankie."

"Well, he's off on lunch and you need to make an appointment with him to be seen Helga. Sorry."

"Right, um I'll just call later and make an appointment. Bye Pheebs."

"Good bye Helga."

Helga headed for the door and was about to leave when someone ran into her and she fell right on the floor. The other person, who she now knew was a man, also fell on the floor.

"Watch where you're going! Criminy!"

"Yea, yea toots. Weren't you leaving? You should get to it."

Helga came to her feet and said, "Who do you think you are?"

"Who do you think YOU are little girl? The name is Frankie George, you know, the owner of this firm."

Well, this was embarassing. Not to mention was quick to help Frankie up, hand him his brief case, and dust off his suit. It was time for her to turn into the biggest ass kisser of the century.

"Frankie, I mean Mr. George, I'm so so sorry about this. I'm just a little on edge today. I'm having a rough name is Celine and I'm an aspiring lawyer, I just wanted some advice from you. I didn't even know it was you. So sorry."

"Get your hands off me. Aspiring lawyer or not you have been rude and need to leave."

"Listen, I just want a couple tips for when I pass the bar. Pleeeease."

"1. Study hard. 2. Read your law books and 3. Don't be rude to potential colleagues. Now good bye Celine. Have a nice day."

"Wait, wait! I have more-"

"Leave Little Girl! Grown ups have work to do."

Little girl? Who did he think he was?

"Would Rhonda like you acting like this Frankie?"

"What? Rhonda? Who sent you? Get out of my office. I'm calling the police."

"Do it then. I'm sure a man who's the murderer of his own child, a home wrecker, and a son of a bitch whose balls will be ripped off for killing Rhonda will be highly credible."

Helga hauled out of the office as soon as she could. She was not prepared to be arrested today. At least she knew Frankie knew Rhonda. He freaked out at the mention of her name.

"Who the hell was that Phoebe?"

Phoebe shrugged and said, "I don't know sir. She just walked in."

"Well make sure you keep the crazies out of here. I was JUST almost got killed not too long ago. We don't need another hostage situation."

"Yes sir," Phoebe smiled as her boss went into his office. Her smile dropped when she saw she was alone. "Oh Helga."

 **Author's Note: More Frankie news later!**


	20. Drinks Are Flying

**Author's Note: Decided to update twice today because I won't be for awhile. I have family issues going on right now and will be updating after everything is sorted out. I hope you all like this chapter. I had fun writing it. Oh and thanks for the reviews :)! 90 reviews is so great. I'm so grateful for all the readers and reviewers.**

 **Chapter 20: Drinks Are Flying**

 **Press Conference. Day: Thursday. Time 8:03 AM.**

Sergeant Bergman stood at the podium. His uniform was clean and his brass buttons were exceptionally shiny. He stared at the camera with a tight lip. He was either nervous or extremely upset. Anyone could look at the man and tell he was physically exhausted. The cameras began rolling as he ran his hand through his hair.

"A body was discovered buried near the edge of the Hillwood River. The body was identified as 23 year old, Patricia Coleman. She was a rising paralegal at Pembroke's and worked under the mantel of Hillwood's best lawyers. She was buried with her dog, whose necks was severed in three places. The cause of death for Ms. Coleman is strangulation. We have no information on the suspect or a motive but will continue to investigate. With the crime rate rising in Hillwood I ensure the citizens that the police are still working hard to protect you. The deaths of Ms. Wellington-Lloyd and now Ms. Coleman will be thoroughly investigated until the culprits are discovered. Please do not be alarmed. Thank you."

The Sergeant had a long day ahead of him. He had to brief his entire unit on the proper protocol and make sure there isn't pandemonium going on in the city. The citizens needed to know that the police had control, even when there were loonatic murderers running around.

 **Debriefing. Time 10:45 AM**

The room was full of every cop in the city. They all looked equally annoyed and equally tired. In the past two weeks alone the police department was flooded with tips of suspicious activity, murders, and tips on the Lloyd case. Sid and Harold may have been the lead investigators but it didn't mean the entire department didn't have to bare the brunt of the case too. Sid and Harold walked into the packed room and took their seats up front near the Sergeant. They both looked like walking zombies and had spent most of the night digging into the Patricia Coleman case to look for a possible connection to Rhonda's case.

Behind the Sergeant was a board with pictures and red thread linking the pictures together. It was a web, the very same web that Sid and Harold had spent all night working putting together.

"Good of you both to join us. Okay you guys let's make this quick so we can get you all back on the streets," He pointed to a picture of Rhonda. "As all of you are aware it's been almost a month since Ms. Lloyd's murder. Since her body was discovered helpful information has been discovered. She was pregnant but the father was not her fiance. We suspect Frankie George, Hillwood's top lawyer, to be involved. She had an order of protection against him. In addition to these obvious connections Sid ran a number which was linked to a burner phone, which we now have in our possession. The phone has numerous messages between Ms. Lloyd and Frankie. We are having IT extract all of the messages for examination," He then pointed to a photo of Pembroke's Law Firm. "The shooting that occurred a week ago is the best law firm in this city. It's obvious why someone would attack but the main target was Frankie George. He didn't see his assailants but he said they were looking for something," He then pointed to a photo of Phoebe. "Phoebe Heyerdahl is a secretary at the very same law firm. She is under surveillance and protection by our fine police department. She gave a statement that someone planned to kill her boss, who happens to be the same Frankie George. Her cat was murdered in her home last week in the same manner that Ms. Coleman's dog was," He referenced the picture of Patricia Coleman. "She was working directly under the mantel of Frankie G. She could've discovered something. Maybe Frankie is involved in some dirty legal work or maybe he put the wrong person in jail. Who knows what she found out, but she's dead now. If you haven't recognized a pattern here people I suggest you find a new profession."

The Sergeant continued, "Our main concerned is to catch the killer who is hurting all of these people. Our second concern is to protect the identity of our main suspect now. In the case of the Lloyd murder we still are suspicious of Horowitz but we must shift our attention to Frankie G. No one can know about this. Continue your late night patrolling its the least you all can do. Report any tips or leads to me or Detective Berman. Thank you for your dedication. Let's nail these sons of bitches!"

"Also let's give a big hand to Officer Sidney and Detective Berman for spending many sleepless nights on the Lloyd case. All of the information presented today was investigated and discovered by them. Give them some praise!"

The room erupted in clapping. Clapping that quite frankly irritated Sid, who had less than a few hours of sleep last night. Harold on the other hand drowned his sleep deprivation with sugar and coffee so he was doing alright. Sid refused to ingest any of that chemical stuffed crap. A shot of whiskey and he'd feel fine.

"Debriefing is over. Hey, Sidney can I see you in my office?" The Sergeant walked over to him as everyone else exited the room.

"I'll be on patrol Sid, while you talk to Serg. Want anything?" Harold asked as he stood up. Sid nodded no and followed the Sergeant into his office.

Sid was anything but afraid of his boss. In fact him and the Serg played jokes on each other all the time, but the way he was looking at him right now had him worried. Had something gone wrong with the case? Sid took his seat across from the Sergeant at his desk. He admired his shiny file cabinet and hardwood floor compared to his rusty file cabinet and old, shag carpet. He wanted to be him some day. He wanted the office and the respect and most importantly the shiny jacket.

"What's going on Serg? Someone stole your snacks again?"

"Sidney, there's been a leak."

"A leak? Someone sent information out but how?"

"That's why you're here. Apparently a civilian found out that Frankie G. was a suspect in the case and harassed him at his office."

Helga's name suddenly entered her mind. No one could be that ballsy except her.

"Well you just told the entire force about his connection so could it be one of them?"

"This happened yesterday Sidney, before we even debriefed."

"How do you know it was necessarily a leak? What if they just had a bone to pick with him?"

"The young lady yelled that Frankie was ,and I quote 'the murderer of his own child, a home wrecker, and a son of a bitch whose balls would be ripped off for killing Rhonda' end quote. No one else knew about Frankie even being a suspect. No one knew about the baby not being Eugene's but you, me and Harold. I certainly didn't do it and Harold leaves his laptop here every night so that leaves you Sidney."

"Sir, I would never leak information to the public! You know me. I work hard at my job and I would never threaten this force!"

"I'm not saying you purposely leaked information. I know you Sidney and I know you're a man of integrity. I'm simply saying get the leak under control or you will be suspended immediately. I'd hate to suspend one of my best men, but it's my job to protect the confidentiality of our investigations."

"Yes sir. I absolutely will handle it."

Sid was fuming. His mind went back to Helga, in his bed, on his laptop. She wouldn't have done that. She cared about him and not just his connections. Helga wouldn't do that.

 **~/~**

Helga and Phoebe had decided they need to relax and have a night out on the town. Since the murder Phoebe suggested they unwind, have some drinks, and dance with some attractive men. It was strange seeing her best friend in a short, tight cocktail dress and acting like a normal, sexual human being. It was even more strange seeing her drooling over men who weren't Gerald.

They had been together since they were in middle school for God's sake. They were each other's first everything and they had been obsessed with each other every since grade school. When Phoebe called Helga crying one night saying that Gerald had broken up with her even Helga couldn't believe it. She thought it was just a break for a week but now it had been a couple months and neither Phoebe nor Gerald had spoken to each Gerald was over the apartment visiting Arnold he seemed to be loving the single life, while Phoebe was at home accumulating multiple pets to soothe her pain. At least she knew he friend wasn't going to become a crazy old cat lady.

Helga had decided to dress like a girl today and put on a tight body con black dress. What she lacked in breasts (She had proclaimed herself the queen of the itty bitty titty committee long ago) she made up for in her model-esque, sculpted legs. It did wonders with accentuating her long legs. She lacked a chest but Phoebe made sure to comment on her derriere, which she described as round and full. She had a little something going on, considering the guys kept staring at her. Maybe they were looking at her tamed, straight hair or her pouty painted pink lips. Who knows what the men were looking at? It felt good to get some male attention.

The dancefloor was packed. They had decided to try out a new nightclub called Tenderloins and right now they didn't regret it. No one could even see the dancefloor because people were moving from wall to wall against the beat of the club music. It seemed like there was no more room for people but when Helga and Phoebe hit the dancefloor space magically appeared. Men flocked to them.

While they were dancing a man had taken an interest in Phoebe and was eyeing her from across the dancefloor. He was a tall African American man, well-groomed, and had nice strong arms. Definitely Phoebe's type.

"That guy is winking at you Phoebe. You should go talk to him! He's your type. Black with a big-"

"HELGA! No need to be so vulgar. I don't know if I want to talk to him. I haven't even talked to another guy in such a long time."

"Let's go take some shots. Maybe a little liquid courage will get you to loosen up." Helga dragged Phoebe through the crowd.

"Don't look now but isn't that my ex and Arnold over there at the bar?"

Helga's eyes almost bulged out of her head. This couldn't be serious.

~/~

Meanwhile at the bar Arnold was starting his first day as a new bartender. The club was new, had a better pay, and honestly had a much better atmosphere than his old job. The tips were great, the woman were flirty, and the alcohol was top notch. He could make enough rent money in a week than he could between his two jobs. Gerald had tagged along for support, it was his way of apologizing or maybe he just went a couple free shots.

Arnold was busy mixing a mojito for a beautiful brunette, while Gerald was enjoying the scenery. By scenery he was enjoying the half dressed woman surrounding the bar for drinks. Arnold was sure in Gerald's conceited head they were all near the bar specifically for him.

"Man, I love your new job! The honeys are grade A," Gerald said as he sipped on his drink.

"Can you try not to be so gross Gerald? You are practically drooling right now. Let's have some dignity alright?" Arnold shook the shaker, gave it one last flip in the air, and then poured it into a martini glass. He placed fresh mint on the side of the glass and it was done. "Classic mojito ready!"

He handed the drink to the brunette in the purple dress. She dropped a ten in his tip jar and smiled a sexy smile. Gerald caught the girls hand and her attention by grabbing her arm.

"Hey, what's your name baby? You like mojitos. Maybe we can take a nice vacation on an island."

Arnold just shook his head at his friend. He was horrible at flirting and even worse at reading women. The girl snuffed him said "Ew" and quickly disappeared into the crowd. Arnold couldn't help but laugh at his failed attempt of picking up a girl.

"Whatever. She's not my type anyway. What are you laughing at?"

"I'm laughing at you fail miserably at rebounding from your ex," Arnold said as he wiped the inside of the shot glasses down with a cloth. "She isn't your type because she's not Asian and not Phoebe."

"Whatever man. Phoebe was the one who was too busy working all the time. You can't talk considering you didn't get passed 2nd base with Lila because you're too busy pinning after your roommate."

"Speaking of Phoebe and my roommate. Is that not them right over there or are my eyes broken from the lights?"

"Oh shit! That is them and they're looking good," Gerald's eyes scanned over Phoebe with lust then he dropped smile and frowned. "You think she's out here looking for another man? Has she moved on that fast?"

"I don't know but you can ask her yourself.. They're coming over here."

"Can I get a Sex on the Beach Mr. Sexy Bartender?" A female asked.

"Coming right up." Arnold smiled and turned his back to get the orange juice and cranberry juice from the fridge. While he was busy making the drink, Phoebe and Helga had arrived at the bar. Arnold greeted them as he mixed the young ladies drink. "How are you doing tonight ladies?"

"Do you work at every bar in the city Football Head? The one night I wanted to get away from you! Hello Geraldo. I see you brought your twin too," Helga greeted. Phoebe was noticeably quiet. The tension between Gerald and Phoebe was high.

Arnold finished off the drink and almost spilled it when he got sight of Helga. She was stunning beyond belief. In all the time they had lived together he had never seen Helga look so… attractive. Of course she was attractive and beautiful before but now she was so much more desireable. The way the dress hugged her body left nothing to the imagination. I'm sure that's the look she was going for. It definitely worked for her.

"Um, uh Helga… you look reaaaaally good," Arnold complimented.

"Thanks. Um so can we get drinks or are you just going to gawk all night?"

"Yea. What can I make you two? It's on the house."

"So I have to pay but the ladies don't! I see how it is." Gerald protested.

"Two glasses of tequila straight. Hold the ice. Don't skimp on the lime or salt. Two shots of Captain Morgan for a start though. Phoebe here needs to loosen up for the guys." Helga jutted Phoebe in the rib cage to get her attention. Phoebe was far too busy having an eye love connection with Gerald.

"I got it. So if you both are drinking who's-

Before Arnold could ask his question a guy walked over to Helga and was a little too close for comfort.

"I saw you from across the room and I had to get over here. A woman as beautiful as you shouldn't be over here around the bar. She should be the center of attention. I'd love for you to dance with me Beautiful."

Arnold's eye twitched. This guy was scum. Arnold could tell, it was his guy senses. The way he lightly put a hand on Helga's shoulder pissed him off. Who said he could touch her?

"Um I think she's fine where she is," Arnold said out loud. He actually didn't mean to say it out loud but he was glad he did. The guy was ticked off. He was about to be even more ticked off. "Here's your drinks."

Arnold "accidently" spilled a small amount of tequila on the guy's shirt and boy did he flip out. Just. Like. A. Women. He frantically began wiping and blowing his shirt to get the tequila off.

"You need to pay for my dry cleaning bartender guy!"

"And you need to LEAVE. NOW. Nobody cares about your stupid shirt. Get out of here."

The guy went off into the crowd. Helga was quick to grab the drinks and take Phoebe with her.

Gerald was still shocked at what had just went down, "Dude, you just bullied that guy. You need to get that jealousy under control."

"I didn't bully him. He was harassing Helga. You saw the way he touched her, totally uncalled for!"

"Riiiiight. Or you're just mad he was doing something you couldn't. Still upset about Sid huh?"

"Do NOT mention Sid. Every time I turn around it's Sid. Sid. Sid. The guy isn't even THAT great." Arnold had gotten so upset he accidently dropped a bottle full of vodka on the floor.

"You should clean that up man. You can be in denial all you want, but I'm not doing it. I'm going to go get my woman back," Gerald proclaimed as he searched the crowd for Phoebe.

Arnold didn't care what anyone said. He wasn't jealous of Sid or anyone else. She was free to do what she wanted and he was free to do what he wanted. He was just over protective that's all. Besides, Sid wasn't here to be Helga's designated driver was he?

"Bartender! Are you paying attention? I've been trying to order a drink for five minutes!"

This was going to be a long night.


	21. Drunk Texting

**Chapter 21: Drunk Texting**

Gerald had taken the liberty of driving Phoebe home himself, probably leaving room for them to rekindle their romance. Arnold was left with a very drunk Helga and vocal Helga. He could barely get her in the door without her giggling or yelling or trying to attack him. She was already difficult sober but drunk it wa slike she the Hulk or something. The girl was strong and she had quite the mouth on her. Arnold decided it was best to pick her up bridal style and get her to her bed.

She let out a surprising giggle and cuddled into his chest, "Ohhh Arnold. I always knew we'd get married my darling!"

Arnold almost dropped her on the floor. This girl was insane. All she kept rambling on and on about were dramatic lines poetry declaring undying love to her "corn haired goddess". It was drunk gibberish to him. Arnold was successful in getting her on the bed. Now the issue was getting her to change into comfortable clothing. How was he possibly going to undress her without it being awkward?

Helga was rolling around on the bed with her legs sprawled open so he had full view of her panties. Arnold turned around quick and tried to erase the sight from his mind. He rummaged through her drawers and found a tank top and pajama bottoms for her to put on. Now the real challenge was to get her changed.

"Oh Arnold my darling! You are the sugar to my coffee, the sweet morning breeze, the sun, moon and stars and heaven above," Helga screamed as Arnold kneeled down to get her heels off. She didn't even close her legs which made Arnold blush a bit. Helga just continued screaming and flailing around while Arnold struggled to unbuckle her complicated and unnecessarily strappy shoes.

"Helga, you have to stop moving. I'm trying to help you and would it kill you to close your legs? It's inappropriate for me to see, see your underwear." Arnold finally got one shoe off and was working on the other.

"Arnold likes seeing my precious petals huh?"

Arnold removed the second shoe and covered his eyes. He didn't want to see Helga's "precious petals" at least not like this. He handed her her clothes with one hand and covered his eyes with the others.

"You need to change your clothes. Put this on. I'll leave."

Helga quickly unzipped her dress and let it hit the floor. She was clad in her bra and underwear, "Don't go Arnold. I want to stay with meeeeee. I don't want to put clothes on!"

Jesus, she was half naked in front of him now. At least in the dress he could imagine what was underneath but now he couldn't ignore the truth glaring in front of him. He was attracted to his roommate and she was making it more than difficult to fight temptation. Suddenly there was a bra thrown on his head. That was it! He needed to phone a friend! Arnold ran from Helga's room and into his, shutting the door behind him. His breathing was heavy as he dialed a number, any number he could see first.

"Hello? This better be important Arnold. I'm on night patrol."

It was the voice of someone he didn't want to hear right now. Sid. How he hated his stupid accent and smug attitude. He eyed the clock. It was 3AM. No one else would be up right now.

Arnold said in the most unexcited voice he could muster,"Hi Sid."

"What's the problem? Have you been stabbed? Has someone tried to break into your home? Is Helga okay? No one calls at 3AM that doesn't have a problem." SId was obviously deep into police mode at the moment and didn't even suspect why Arnold was calling. Maybe he was wasting Sid's time with a trivial situation but he needed him.

"No. No. No and no. Well she's okay. She's more than okay. She's drunk and-"

"You called my private line because Helga is drunk? As fun as that'd be to see I don't think this was the best decision to make Arnold."

"She's not just drunk. She's acting crazy. She asked if I wanted to see her 'precious petal'. "

"What in God's name is a 'precious petal' Arnold?"

"SID! Her… you know."

He could hear Helga up walking now and what sounded like something breaking.

Sid laughed when he realized,"Ohhhhhhh. Good to know she isn't an angry drunk. Well what's the problem? You don't touch, look at, or entertain the idea of _watering_ her 'precious petal'."

"It's hard-"

"That's what she said."

"Can you grow up? She's parading around half naked now and I'm a man. I'm not sure I can get her calmed down without um looking. She's breaking stuff now. She has the strength of the incredible Hulk."

"You're a man huh? Give her the phone Arnold."

"But-"

"Give Helga the phone Arnold."

The sound of breaking wood filled Arnold's ears as he creeped open the door. Helga was probably dancing on top of their cheaply made coffee table and it broke under her. She didn't look hurt but she was still walking around not dressed.

"Helga!" Arnold called to her and hand her the phone. "It's Sid."

Helga said in a chipper tone,"Siiiiiiiid! I miss him."

She snatched the phone and from there she got completely calm, even sat down on the couch.

She handed him back the phone and said in a high pitched," Sid said good bye! I'm ready for bed now."

What the hell did he say to her? Whatever he said Helga settled down quietly on the couch and covered herself with the blanket they kept there for movie nights. Helga snuggled up under the blanket. Arnold took the opportunity to give her her clothes to sleep in. After changing, Helga settled down but that didn't mean she was down talking.

"I had fun tonight. Did y,you have fun Arnold?"

"I'm sure you did have fun. Maybe a bit too much fun. I didn't get to have fun because I was working."

And staring at all the guys approaching you from a far.

"We can have fun together Arnold," Helga shifted closer to Arnold and ended up placing her head in his chest. In her embrace the world stopped still on its axis. There was no time, no wind, no rain. Arnold's mind was at peace. How could it be that he hadn't seen Helga's love for what it was before? Pure. Unselfish. Undemanding. Free. He felt her body press in, soft and warm. There was no more denying it, but she was drunk right now and maybe he a little drunk too. Besides, they were with other people. It was Sid who had calmed her down, not him. Lila was literally everything he could want in a women but he found himself craving the woman now sleeping in his chest more and more.

" Arnold," she muttered under her breath. That was definitely the tequila talking. No way that was true. Tomorrow she'd go back to Sid and he'd go hopefully open new leads with Lila. But tonight he held her like nothing else mattered. He needed to talk to Lila. Once Helga was fast asleep Arnold gave her a soft kiss on the forehead and snuck to his bedroom.

It was late but Lila still answered the phone in her groggy voice. She must have been sleeping. Truthfully Arnold didn't care. He needed to get things off his mind.

"A-Arnold, it's 3AM. What ever could you want at this hour? I have work in the morning." Lila sounded slightly irritated to say the least. Maybe he should've waited.

"I'm sorry about this but I have some stuff on my mind. I wanted to talk to you."

Lila yawned and said," What is it?"

"I'm not so sure about dating you anymore Lila. I, I don't know I had a change of heart."

"You have feelings for someone else. I should've known."

"No, it's just I don't trust you. You're hiding things from me, I know it. I talked to Eugene and he nodded towards you being crazy. I don't know what to believe. With Rhonda's death, everything has been so sketchy."

"If you want the truth we can meet up tomorrow. I'm ever so sorry but please don't call me at this hour again. I have work in two hours. Good bye Arnold."

Before he could even say good bye back Lila had already hung up. For once the girl with the painted on smile seemed to have cracked. She was definitely pissed. At least Helga had calmed down and gotten to sleep thanks to Sid of all people. It was time for him to do the same.

~/~

Helga woke up the next morning with drool on her face and quite the hangover. Her mouth was dry and her head was killing her. She rolled over and immediately hit the cold floor. This wasn't her bed. She looked up to find she was sleeping on the living room couch. How did she even get home? She felt like crap. Maybe she overdid it last night. She crawled back up to the couch and looked to her left. There was water, aspirin, and a note resting on the end table. There was a God!

She popped the aspirin, chugged the water, and began to read the note:

 _Helga,_

 _Went out to get some food with Lila. You were out for a while. There's food for you in the microwave. I made waffles and bacon. Hope they help with the hangover. I'll see you soon. By the way, "your precious petals" were unplucked._

 _Love,_

 _Arnold_

What the hell was a precious petal? Idiot. Oh well at least there was food involved, something she desperately needed to get over her hangover. She grabbed her phone and headed to the kitchen. Apparently she had sent risque texts to Sid, including wanting him to come over and thrust her up against a wall. Criminy, she was never drinking that much again! To her surprise there was no response to any of her texts. Maybe he could tell she was drunk and didn't respond.

She sent an I'm sorry text and then heated her food up. It had been a few minutes and he didn't respond. He usually was a quick texter. Maybe he was busy? Maybe he's been shot? Maybe the mob killed him? Stop overreacting Pataki, he's fine she thought. He'll respond soon she hoped. Sid was fine she told herself.

 **Author's Note: What do you all think?**


	22. Dash

**Chapter 22: Dash**

Lila's home was immaculate to say the least. It was a gorgeous loft apartment in the upper part of downtown. It sat on the top of a hill with a full wall of windows. The furniture was all white and clean. Even the carpet was pristine and perfectly clean. It was like walking into a bowl of milk. Lila certainly matched her gorgeous home. Her long red hair was bone straight and she was clad in a long, purple maxi dress. When she opened the door it was hard to not be taken back by her natural beauty, but he remembered he came here for a reason.

"Lila, hey." He greeted her as they both had a seat on her white leather couch.

"Hello Arnold. It's ever so nice of you to be here."

"Thanks. When you talked about lunch I thought you meant going out. Although your place is probably better looking than any restaurant I've ever been to."

In the back of Arnold's head he worried how she could afford a place like this without some sort of help. She was only an assistant to Eugene, it wasn't like she had an actual position in the company. This place had to cost big money, especially with the convenient location in the middle of downtown. How was she paying for all of this?

"I thought we'd want to talk in private Arnold. I was ever so shocked when you called me so late at night. It seemed quite urgent. You went to my boss about our personal relationship. I feel like that was inappropriate. If you had a problem we can talk about it now."

"You were the one that brought up Eugene in the first place and your special relationship. You didn't honestly think I wouldn't think it was weird or even inquire about it. Speaking of Eugene is one of the perks of your relationship this place? There's no way you can pay for this for just being an assistant Lila. Be honest."

"I'd appreciate it if you stopped being ever so rude. I have a friend helping me pay for it. Eugene has nothing to do with my finances besides writing me a check every month."

"What friend Lila? You'd think if we were ever in a real relationship you would've told me you had another person paying for your apartment."

That confirmed all of his suspicions. She was seeing someone else and that someone wasn't Eugene. She was shadier than Brainy's breath. She was shadier than his grandfather's cooking. How could he have been so blind? He knew the answer: It was his hormones.

"Just a friend Arnold. You don't have to worry about him."

"No I don't because we aren't together anymore. All I ask is you tell me the truth but you can't even answer my questions." Arnold got up to promptly leave but Lila was quick to catch him before he got up.

"He's an ex, okay. He was my boyfriend but we're over. I'm serious about you."

"Then why is he still paying for your apartment Lila? If you two aren't together. None of this makes sense."

"H-he's a very dangerous man, Arnold," Lila whimpered. She began speaking in a low voice and began to shake a bit.

"Lila, what's wrong? How is he dangerous? Has he hurt you?"

"Arnold, you need to go now. I'm ever so sorry but I have some work to get done today." Lila pushed him out of her house. She slammed the door urgently.

What was she planning on telling him? He could tell by the way her usual happy demeanor had changed she was in some sort of trouble. He needed to find out what it was or who it was rather that had her so shaken up.

~/~

Helga was bored out of mind at home alone. She wanted entertainment or Sid around to mess with her. Much to her surprise he still wasn't answering her texts, so she decided to call. That immediately went to voicemail. She sighed, she actually kind of missed him. She starting to think there had been an accident or something. Being a police officer was dangerous, especially with the crime rate rising. She was becoming worried. Suddenly the house phone rang. Don't ask why they have a house phone still. Arnold was so old fashioned. No one ever called but bill collectors.

"Hello."

A deep voice was on the other line of the phone, "Hello. Is Arnold Shortman there?"

"Um no. Who's calling?"

"Nevermind. I'll call back later. Tell him the Shark is coming for him. Thanks Toots." The dial tone came on the phone. Whoever that strange guy was boy did he should threatening, even to her. What did Arnold do that had anything to do with a shark? Helga WAS the card shark around here. She shrugged and planned on relaying the message to him eventually. What was he doing anyway? Probably prancing around, picking out wall paper with his stepford wife. She could just gag at the thought of that scene.

The house phone rang again. She rolled her eyes and answered it.

Helga yelled into the reciever, "I don't know who this is but stop playing on my phone Shark Boy!"

"Ms. Pataki? OR should I say Celine?"

Fuck, it was Franke G. What did he want to personally deliver a verbal assault after she embarrassed herself at Pembroke's.

"Frankie G. What are you calling me for? How'd you get my number?"

"Your friend Phoebe is pretty loyal. I should've known considering what a great employee she's been. She swore she didn't know you. I went to the police and pressed charges. They gave me your real name, but to my surprise one of the cops stuck up for you. Sidney was his name, I believe. He said good things about so I dropped the charges."

Sid. Even when she wasn't talking to him he always had her best interest at heart. He deserved better than her.

"Why are you calling me? Thanks for dropping the charges too."

"Well Helga, I realised anybody that is that passionate to rudely barge into someone else's place of business for answers must be a true friend to Rhonda."

"So you DO know Rhonda?"

"Yea, I did. I knew her very well and seems like you know a bit about me already. Seems like you've been misinformed Helga. I had nothing to do with Rhonda's murder because I wasn't allowed within 50 feet of her at the time."

"Why is that?" That's right the restraining order.

"I'm only calling you to clear my name. You can't drag my name through the mud before I lose clients. I'm not sure about the restraining order but I'm pretty sure Rhonda didn't issue it herself. She had people around her who were what she described as snakes. She came to me for legal help. Rhonda was in a little deep and people could've easily taken her out."

"Wait who was the snake? Was it Eugene or Lila? Did she ever mention anything about a shark or something?"

"Horowitz Inc and all its 3000 employees are sketchy, according to Rhonda, so to pinpoint the exact snake would be difficult. My opinion is that a fish always rots from the head down but I can't be sure. What I can say is their engagement wasn't something Rhonda wanted."

If she knew the company did some sort of dirty business she was definitely making a lot of noise and sticking her pretty head out in the wrong way. The question was which one of the employees at the company did the dirt. It could be anyone

"Why?"

"Her and Eugene were nonexistent. He never touched Rhonda, at least not in the way I did. It seems I'm saying too much now. Listen, I appreciate you trying to track down who killed her but there's dangerous people involved. You can get hurt. I'd hate to see another young woman murdered. If you ever need legal assistance give the office a call Helga. I have a meeting so this will have to be good bye."

"Hey wait so you and-"

Before she could finish her question Frankie G. hung up the phone. This made things even more confusing. If Frankie didn't kill her who did? Were Frankie and Rhonda… lovers? Oh this girl had more drama dead than she ever could have stirred up alive. Thank God for Sid putting in a good word for her. Now she had more leads to follow.

Before she jumped on her laptop the television lit up with shocking news running across the screen: **BREAKING NEWS: Four unnamed cops shot in a firefight on patrol late last night. Last night a black Escalade rolled up on the police car and fired upon the car. Two of the cops have been hospitalized for fatal gun shot wounds and the other two were dead on arrival to Hillwood Mercy Medical Center. Mafia involvement speculated. More updates on this story later.**

Her heart was beating out of her chest. He couldn't be...hurt or dead? He just couldn't be. She dialed his number again and once again the call was sent straight to voicemail. Criminy, he has to be okay. He just has to be.

 **Author's Note: Who do you think Lila's ex is? Who do you think the shark is? So many animal references this chapter so also who do you think is the snake in Horowitz Inc? Lila or Eugene or someone we haven't met yet? And do they have connections to Rhonda's murder?**


	23. It's Over

**Chapter 23: It's Over**

Helga hadn't seen or talked to Sid in three weeks. He wasn't even responding to her texts. She had Arnold and her at a better point in their relationship now, but still part of her missed Sid. He was a good guy. She hoped nothing had happened to him in the line of duty. She knocked his door fully intended Sid to be happy to see her.

Sid opened the door and immediately rolled his eyes,"Why have you come here Helga?"

Helga followed behind Sid who was so closed off she could tell from his body language. He had his arms crossed against his chest and stood on the other side of the room as her.

"Criminy! You have been ignoring my texts Sid! I thought you had been killed!"

"Killed? How dramatic are you?"

"I saw the news about four cops being hurt. I was freaking out and you ignoring me didn't help"

"Well it wasn't me and Harold that night. I'm fine besides almost losing my job, but you wouldn't care about that would you Helga. If you didn't seem to notice I was ignoring you on purpose. You seem to care more about my police clearance than me."

Helga stammered, "Don't be an idiot. Of course I care about you."

Sid laughed but his expression had hurt written all over it, "You don't fool me Helga." He held out his laptop which she had flipped through, "Remember I deal with professional bullshitters…"

Shit, he knew. He knew she had been using his police clearance. That's why he hadn't been talking to her. She might have ruined her entire friendship.

Helga finished his sentence for him,"...and crooks for a living."

Sid nodded and walked over to gaze out his window, "My boss told me to fix the leak so I did it in the easiest way I could. I got rid of you and now there's no more leak. You should leave." he said quietly.

Helga had never heard him speak so quietly. But suddenly she understood that he spoke quietly when he was hurt. She had just hurt him really badly.

"I don't want to go."

Sid laughed softly, "If it's more information you're after Helga, there's no more info here for you, so you better leave. We're done."

"I'm not after info at all," Helga said softly.

The next thing she knew she was kissing him. When she slammed her lips against his it had nearly knocked all of the air from her lungs. She hardly had time to think before Sid slipped his tongue against the seam of her mouth, at her permission to access, he allowed his tongue to delve into the recesses of her mouth. It was a sloppy kiss that tasted like old whiskey in between their shallow breaths. Sid's arms reached up and tangled his hands in her blonde hair. In a moment Helga pulled away and arched into Sid's welcoming, broad chest. She moaned softly in the contact of their body heat before leaning in to claim his lips again. Sid lifted her up so she straddle his hips and carried her into the bedroom, with their mouths not separating for one minute. He threw her down onto his bed and crawled on top of her, placing sweet kisses on her collar bone.

"I missed you," Sid said candidly. He placed a kiss on her forehead, "You're." Another kiss on her cheek, "So." He finally kissed her lips again, "Beautiful."

"Sid," she moaned against his touch.

In between his heavy breaths Sid managed to say, "I wonder what it would take to make you forget?"

Sid began kissing and sucking her neck. His hand made its way to her thigh, rubbing it gently through the fabric of her pants. She was becoming completely undone under his touch and his lips.

"I already forget about the case," Helga gasped honestly.

Sid stopped kissing her for a moment and cupped her face. He looked directly into her eyes and said, "I wasn't talking about the case, I was talking about him."

She knew exactly who he was talking about it. Though he didn't mention his name the mere reference to him completely took her out of the moment. Even with Sid inches away from her face she couldn't even focus on him. All she could think about now was Arnold and what he would think of her if he found out.

"You're thinking about him right now aren't you? What am I, your Arnold placeholder? Fuck, Helga." Sid rolled off of Helga and landed on his back on the other side of the bed.

"I want you," Helga said confidently.

"W-what did you say?"

Helga straggled Sid and began to unbutton his shirt. Her hands traced the scars on his chest when she repeated, "I said I want you, you idiot!"

"Oh Helga." Sid groaned as their lips met again. His hands began to run up and down her back and found there way under her shirt. His hands were warm against her back. The skin to skin contact had shocked her. She was so into the moment she had forgotten to tell him…

"Sid, I've never… I'm a-"

She couldn't even get the words out from her mouth with Sid's sexy smirk and obviously skilled hands tracing circles around her back. Here was Sid who exuded sex appeal from his entire body and she was a little girl who had no experience.

"You're a virgin Helga? Are you serious? You're beautiful. How did that even happen?"

"I've never been interested in anyone in that way, other than Arnold. I just didn't have the right guy I suppose."

"If you've been saving it for Arnold this whole time, how are you so sure I'm the 'right guy'?"

Because Helga was panting and ready to rip off his clothes and jump his bones. That was a good reason.

"I, I don't know."

"You can't even give me a straight answer," Sid sighed as he began to button his shirt. "We aren't doing this Helga."

Sid pushed Helga gently from on top of him and stood up to adjust his pants.

"What? Sid, no I want this with YOU. If I wanted Football Head I wouldn't be here with you."

"That's the problem. You want me but you love him. I'm always going to be second best."

"Sid, listen-"

"No you listen," Sid said as he walked over to her. "You deserve to give your goods to someone you love. What's between us is attraction for sure but I can never compete with the way you feel for Arnold, even if we did somehow form a relationship. Go home to him and tell him how you feel right now before it's too late."

Sid continued, "I'm sorry for ignoring you but I trusted you and I like you to find out you went through my laptop without my permission hurt. I'm also sorry for trying to jump your bones. It's been a rough three weeks. I've lost three colleagues and I guess I just felt really vulnerable myself.

"I'm sorry Sid."

"It's okay. If you ever need anything you call me. I'm always here for you. Although you aren't welcome to using my laptop ever again. If you ever need some good whiskey or a personal trainer or some dude body slammed then we can talk"

"T-thanks," Helga was being escort by Sid towards the front door. She smoothed out her clothes and fixed her hair. "Hey Sid?"

"Yea?" Sid responded as he reached for the door knob.

"How does the germophobe manage to get passed bodily fluids and germs to lose his V card? Who was the special chick?"

Sid laughed," If you must know, you have to promise not tell my dear partner that I had relations with his old high school sweetheart when they were on one of their many breaks. Don't tell Harold. If he knew he'd murder me."

"YOU LOST IT TO RHONDA!"

Harold and Rhonda had been an on again/ off again couple all throughout high school. They were disasterous. One minute they were calling each other turtle ducks and the next Rhonda was yelling at Harold to lose weight so he could fit into designer clothes. Helga remembered prom night when they got into a fight because Harold was eating all of the cake. Rhonda went on and on about how she could have someone else and didn't have time to deal with his binge eating or his weight. Harold only responded by instructing Rhonda to go ahead and be with someone else then because he just could not give up cake. They weren't the healthiest couple or even the cutest, but one thing was certain Harold was absolutely in love with his "turtle duck" and Rhonda seemed to like Harold enough to keep coming back. They broke up senior year when Rhonda got an offer to model overseas. She of course took it and left Harold in the dust of her designer boots. Harold didn't stop eating for weeks after she was always there though when they had broken up to console Harold. They were close friends and now come to find out Sid was screwing his best friend's girlfriend when Harold was most vulnerable.

"Lost it to her? Yes. Continued messing around with her? Yes. Did I enjoy it? Not really. She only came to me when they had a fight and she wanted to get back at him. Of course, I never told him but I knew she was using me to spite him. I knew it was wrong, but what can I say other than I was a horny, selfish boy who liked the idea of having the most desired girl in school even if she happened to be my best friend's girl."

"You're a pig! You were actually an accomplice in your best friend being cheated on. Where'd your morals go?"

"Hey, I never said I was perfect. I was a pig, I admit. If it makes you feel better we never did anything while they were 'on', just every single time they took a momentary break. What Harold doesn't know won't hurt asked the question and I answered it. No judgement."

Helga rolled her eyes and simply said, "Right." Helga continued, "I'm sure you and Rhonda stayed in touch for booty calls over the years then?"

"Absolutely not. We broke it off junior year. Harold, he told me he loved her and wanted to move the relationship forward. I didn't have the heart to tell him that she didn't love him back so I stopped letting her come to me whenever they broke up. She probably cheated on him with someone else when she wasn't getting enough attention. I always suspected it was Curly who she used after me. I haven't even talked to her since then unless you count discovering her body as 'talking'," Sid seemed to be getting emotional. "Harold was hysterical when he saw the body. I don't think he's recovered. I know he's been eating a lot more since we got the news. He was actually crying over a woman that treated him terribly. You know, we can mourn Rhonda all we want and pretend she was a great person, but she was a self-absorbed bitch. Maybe she finally was self-righteous to the wrong person and got what she deserved."

"For Christ's sake, you're a cop! How can you say an innocent woman deserved to be killed?"

"She wasn't innocent. She was manipulative and cruel. Sure she was nice sometimes but only when she could get something out of it. Don't act like she was so nice to you Helga. She humiliated you every chance she got. I'm not saying she deserved to die. Maybe just maybe she messed with the wrong person that's all."

"You could be right."

She thought about what Frankie had said on the phone three weeks prior. Rhonda was in deep with whoever it was. She pissed off the wrong powerful person it seemed.

"Yea, I know. I'm always right. I'm the detective remember," Sid joked. "Good night Helga. I'll see you around."

"Good night, Sid." Helga turned the knob and stepped into the hallway. She took one last look at Sid before leaving.

Before he shut the door Sid gave Helga a soft kiss on her cheek. Warmth radiated from the spot where his lips touched her face. Helga couldn't believe in the span of a few hours her relationship with him had started and ended all at the same time. She hoped they wouldn't end up like him and Rhonda and could remain friends. Maybe it was better that way anyway.

 **Author's Note: Looks like it's the end of Helga and Sid for good. Anyone feeling sad? I am.**


	24. Warehouse 41

**Chapter 24:**

Helga hurried home, hoping Arnold would be there waiting for her. She had to tell him everything before it was too late. There he was. It was surreal to look at him at the moment. He looked like a corn haired angel sitting on the couch watching football. She examined the way his eyelashes draped over his blue eyes. She looked at the way his lips pursed when he was relaxed and how his bare arms rested against the upholstery of the couch.

"Um, hi Helga. What are you staring at?"

His voice startled Helga. She was so into looking at him she forgot that it wasn't a moment frozen in time. He was gorgeous and she was so flawed. How could she ever begin to explain that she was sorry, that she didn't belong to Sid and that she always knew it was him from the beginning.

"Oh, um I wanted to talk to you." She could tell Arnold was caught off guard. Her heart was beating a hundred miles per minute. How was she supposed to go about this? Criminey, why did she suck so much at adulting and feeling things.

"Well what is it Helga?"

"Well um, uh… some guy called the other day. Called himself a shark or something."

Between snakes and sharks she was just about sick of all of these animal code names.

Arnold nodded and gave her a soft, "Oh."

The silence was killing her. Her head was pounding at a thousand beats per minute. How was she supposed to begin to tell Arnold that her love for him burned hotter than the heat of a hundred suns?

She just laughed awkwardly and snorted loudly. Criminey, she SNORTED. How sexy was that Helga? Great way to get a man by laughing uncomfortably at him.

Arnold blinked hard before saying, "Is everything alright Helga? Um, that noise you just made was...weird."

"I DIDN'T SLEEP WITH SID!" She blurted out and quickly clasped her hands over her face. Her face was probably so red it looked like she had the worst sunburn of her life.

"That's um...great I guess." He was silent for a minute then went on, "Me and Lila haven't done anything either, if that counts for anything. I think she's messing with her ex."

And finally the saint falls from her freaking pedestal! It took him long enough! Anyone could read through her Ms. Goody-Two-Shoes act like a new E.L. James novel.

"I'm sorry it didn't work out. She seemed perfect." Helga attempted to console Arnold, only to be responded to with a loud sigh.

"I think she's in trouble Helga. I feel it. I don't know what to do."

She thought back to the conversation she had with Frankie G. _A fish always rotted from the head down._ If Eugene didn't have enough balls to kill Rhonda then it had to be Lila. She was the only one innocent enough and creepy enough to commit cold blooded murder and get away with it.

"Oh can it Arnold! If she's in trouble she got herself there."

She was tired of his, his Arnold-ness. He never failed to see the good in people, even if they were a psychopathic, beautiful, murderous, seductress. It infuriated her how naive he was. He looked at everything through rose-colored glasses but when it came to Helga he was so critical.

"Why do you hate her so much?"

Was he kidding her right now?

"Because you can't see through her bullshit and think past your dick to see she's playing you Arnold. She just wants to know what we know about Rhonda. How can you not see that?"

"Even if that is the truth that's only one reason. You have always not liked her ever since we were kids. What's the problem?"

"I don't like her because she has you and always has and always will, okay? Is that good enough for you?"

"Helga-"

"Save it. I have to go." Helga turned to walk away but Arnold grabbed her by her arms.

Arnold leaned in close to her face and said, "No, no more running Helga."

Helga held her breath and counted to three. Unexpectedly, his hand drifted to her hip. It settled there and pulled her closer. She inhaled sharply. She was against his warm chest, chiseled to perfection. Must he be so perfect? She splayed her hand against it, intending to push him away, but instead she left it there. His breathing quickened as did hers. He began nuzzling her neck with delicate kisses. So faint, they were whispers. She urged herself to push away, but couldn't. Her limp body began to tremble uncontrollably. His head was angled slightly to the side as his lips came closer and closer to hers. She was surprised to find her own lips parted. Their breaths mingled. Her heart fluttered inside her chest. At first, it was a delicate butterfly of a kiss. Then his arms encircled her. Their lips met and dance together slowly. As if they were taking a minute to get to know each other. As if they couldn't believe it was happening.

Arnold pulled back but kept his hands on either of her cheeks. Too overwhelmed to speak they both stared at each other until their was an all too familiar knock at the door. It knocked them out of whatever moment this was.

"I'll get it." Arnold rushed to get the door.

Those stupid freckles and that perfect hair. That did it. She was the worst cock block of all time. She needed a piece of her mind. Arnold invited her of course and the moment she sat her skin tight wearing, plastic smile having body down on the couch she was going to lose it.

"What the hell is she doing here?" Helga protested. Of all the times she hated this girl she had never been more upset to see her than now. "Who let the murderer in?"

"HELGA!" Arnold yelled.

"Whatever are you talking about Helga? I never killed anyone. That's a bold accusation coming from someone like yourself."

"Someone like myself? You mean someone who sees how manipulative you are! Stop pretending now. i talked to Frankie and he told me that you were the one who killed Rhonda!"

Okay, that was a stretch. He didn't exactly say that but screw it. If it got a confession out of it her outburst was worth it. From the look on her face she was shaken up. She was gritting her teeth which meant Helga hit a hard enough nerve that she was pissed off.

"Helga, you can't accuse her of such a thing. Who is Frankie anyway?"

Lila said in a deadpanned voice, "Frankie is the father of Rhonda Wellington Lloyd's unborn child."

Arnold in shocked said,"WHAT? That isn't possible. She was going to marry Eugene."

"Criminey,Eugene is gay! He couldn't lay a girl if he tried. She went to Frankie because he could never satisfy her."

Helga had cracked her persona but she still smiled like nothing happened. Lila went on to say in her nicest voice possible, "I think you've said enough Helga. I have come to speak to Arnold so if you ever be so kind as to leave that would be nice."

"No Lila she's staying. Is this all true? Did you know Rhonda was cheating on Eugene?"

"Yes. Everything is true Arnold."

"You still didn't answer my question. Who is this Frankie guy? Oh God, did i do this? I gave her the number of Frankie G. He's a lawyer. How did he get involved in this mess?"

"Even I don't know that. Fess up Lila."

"She was going to ruin everything! She wanted out of the relationship with Eugene. She wanted to leave but certain legal precedings wouldn't allow her too. Plus, it would completely ruin Eugene's image. She was going to talk and tell everyone Eugene was gay. She decided she was going to sue Horowitz Inc for doing bad business, for bribing her, and for forcing her into an unhappy relationship."

She went on, "I had to stop her. I had to get rid of Frankie so I paid him off and told him if he didn't go threw with the case Horowitz Inc. would pay him a pretty penny. Frankie wouldn't leave he was in love with Rhonda and the two of them wanted to elope. I turned to Rhonda. She needed to be engaged to Eugene or Frankie would turn up dead. Of course she agreed to the engagement and Frankie was gone."

"Did you kill her Lila?"

Silence set in. You could hear a pin drop.

~/~

Sid and Harold were called into the station late that night. The Sergeant made it seem urgent when he sent the call out. Sid was busy catching up on Grey's Anatomy on Netflix when he had to rush to put on his uniform and head down to the station.

Sid and Harold met the Sergeant in his office. The two men sat down, anticipating a scolding.

"I got tip tonight on the Lloyd case boys. It's a file containing information Rhonda had collected to build a case against Horowitz Inc." He produced a yellow envelope and slid it across the desk to the other men. "Take a good look."

Sid and Harold scanned the paperwork. It was an expense report detailing that 5 million dollars had been moved from an off-shore account in Europe. Other papers documented a similar pattern of moving money around. The numbers didn't add up either. If the average income for the company was 2.5 million how did they suddenly have 5 million dollars to move around?

Harold asked, "I don't understand. Why would they move that much money?"

"Look at the other papers boys."

The next sheet had a warehouse number written in pink ink. Under it were photographs of large wooden crates which were supposedly in that same warehouse.

"Who sent these tips boss?" Sid was curious. His wheels were turning. He had to figure this out.

Sergeant Bergman answered quickly, "Frankie George. He wants to remain anonymous. He said he feels guilty. He said this is what Rhonda would have wanted. She wanted to expose the truth about everything then he sent over all of this paperwork Rhonda had given him days before she died."

Harold stated, "I still don't get it. What was Eugene doing with all this money?"

Sid replied, "Who knows? Let's get to this warehouse Harold. We'll find some answers there."

The Sergeant advised, "Noted. Be careful gentlemen. Who knows what can be there? Call if you need back up."

The two men got into the cop car, wondering what secrets they were about to uncover.

~/~

Lila's words cut through the uncomfortable silence, "No, of course not. I saw her the night she died at the hotel. I begged her to stop and that we could work things out but he turned me away. i tried to protect her." Tears ran down her pale face, "I really tried."

Helga yelled out, "Stop what? Stop with the cryptic bullshit."

Lila was hysterical. She was crying so hard that her eyes were red. "That's why I came here. Arnold isn't safe. Neither of you are safe. Stop digging before you end up like Rhonda. The shark is coming if you don't stop. I don't want anyone else hurt. Please."

Who the fuck was this shark and why was he so dangerous?

~/~

Sid and Harold drove in silence for most of the trip to the warehouse on the edge of town. The factory district was nearly empty, except for the Yahoo sodas being produced in town. It was quiet, almost too quiet. Besides the sound of the radio nothing could be heard driving up to the warehouse. Something just wasn't sitting right with Sid.

He just had to say something, "Remember that girl that was found dead in the bath tub with her dog?"

Harold made a right turn and then replied, "Patricia Coleman? What about her?"

"I don't know. She was only 23. She was young like Rhonda. She had a connection to Frankie G like Rhonda."

"Could be a coincidence. We can't assume Frankie has something to do with these girls' murders. There's no DNA evidence linking him anywhere near either of the women the night they died."

"I'm not saying that. I'm just saying that whoever is doing this might be trying to hit Frankie where it hurts. He is responsible for 85% of criminal convictions in the city. And Phoebe! Phoebe Heyerdahl, who we went to school with. Helga told me someone killed her pet too. She works with Frankie too. This isn't a coincidence Sid. Anyone who is remotely close to Frankie G. end up dead. Why?"

"I'm sure we'll find out." Harold stopped the car in front of the warehouse. Warehouse #41.

Sid had a bad feeling about this. He got out of the car and immediately pulled out his gun. There was no way in hell he was going in unarmed to some seedy warehouse on the shitty side of town.

Harold stood behind Sid with his gun locked and loaded in hand, "Whatever we see in here we cover each other no matter what happens."

Sid nodded and yelled out, "Let's do this!"

Sid thrusted the door open and hoped that he would be able to stomach whatever secrets the warehouse held.

~/~

Helga was fed up and wanted to know what was wrong. What was truth? She was tired of chasing the truth about Rhonda.

"I'm tired of this animal talk. What are you talking about?"

"I,I tried to warn you both. There's a war coming in Hillwood. No one is going to be safe now." With that statement Lila stormed out of the apartment in complete tears.

If a war was coming and if they really weren't safe Helga would be prepared. She wasn't one to go down without a fight.

 **Author's Note: I apologize for the long break. School happened but I'm almost finished this semester now. I hope you all like this chapter. What do you all think will happen next?**


	25. Man Down

**Chapter 25: Man Down**

The air was moist and frigid, almost as if death was already in the air. The two men hesitated, opening the door, slightly ajar to gaze inside. Sid's heart beated fast. He hated situations where he had no control and frankly, he had always been that way. How he came to entering a career in one of the most dangerous, random, and uncontrollable professions was just him trying prove he could do something in a world full of chaos.

His gun was close and his partner, who was having more or less of a mental break down ever since his ex-lover was killed, was right behind him. As unstable as Harold was, Sid couldn't deny his partner was a sharp shooter. He was even more proficient than said himself, who passed all of the gunman tests in the academy in the median level.

If shit hit the fan, Sid thought, at least Harold could shoot the son's of bitches no problem. And shit was definitely going to hit the fan. He had a knot in his stomach and a feeling that someone on this night wasn't going to make it home tonight. Whether it was him or some unsuspecting man or woman at the wrong place, at the wrong time someone's life was going to change forever.

Sid took a deep breath and yelled out, "Hillside Police Department! Hands up!"

To the two officers were surprised to see that the warehouse was completely empty, aside from the six men who stood in the middle of the grey floor.

"Welcome Gentleman. I see you caught us investing in a new property." The man that spoke was tall, 6"2' with brown hair cut in a clean Caesar or buzz cut. His brown eyes were full and lifeless. He had the demeanor of an Al Capone or a modern day god-father. He was calm, almost too calm and he had a soft smirk on his face.

Sid gritted his teeth. This man and his associates were absolute bullshitters and crooks. He and his crew were definitely responsible for majority of the underground deals in the city. He was so good and so clean with his dealings no one could ever catch him. It burned Sid up that he got acquitted and walked away from his alleged crimes due to a lack of evidence or evidence being circumstantial.

"Big Gino." Sid smiled but he knew in his gut this man was bad to the core and he needed to save the city from his plague. Sid didn't put down his gun for a second and neither did Harold. Everything was too quiet. Too convenient. Too easy.

"Sidney. Ha nice to see you. I don't go by Big Gino anymore, just Gino is fine. Boys, this is the boy I used to beat up in middle school for owing me money." Gino extended his hand towards Sid while the other men in the other men in the room laughed, even Harold chortled a bit. "See you made an honest living for yourself. Who would've thought the kid that owed me debt and came to my office shaking would be a cop."

Sid wanted to spit in the man's hand, pull the trigger on his gun, and cuff him right then and there. Being around him made Sid sick and made him want to release all of his rage tenfold just to make sure ass holes like Gino didn't exist in the world.

"It's Sid," Sid scoffed and didn't shake the man's hand. "I see you're just as shady as before. You and your thugs sure don't look anything like you're making an 'honest living' in an abandoned warehouse at 2 in the morning."

"Now, now Sid. Let's not throw insults. After all you and your partner here came into my warehouse unannounced. I know the legal system and you don't have probable cause. Unless you want to link me to a vague and speculative story again."

He knew the legal system for sure, which is why he evaded it so well. Assuming the warehouse was abandoned and no one's public property no search warrant was obtained so anything they could've collected on Gino wouldn't fly in court. Sid was fuming. Today wouldn't be the day he'd bring in a man who's antagonized him since he was 11 years old. He was bully back then but now Gino was probably bullying the whole city.

"Harold, let's go." Sid said between gritted teeth. The two men turned slightly to leave. Harold had around holstered his gun. Sid did the same but kept his hand on it. He didn't have a good feeling about this.

His voice was more menacing than his once stoic demeanor. Gino had won and he knew it but the game wasn't about winning to him. It was about you owing him debt. He got highs from having people grovel at his feet.

Sid wasn't that same little boy, not anymore but he had to let it go and do his job.

Gino spoke just softly enough for only Sid to hear him, "Oh and by the way, tell your friends I'll being seeing them soon."

Shots fired.

~/~

Helga was more than confused. Little Miss Prissy just barged in and ruined her perfect moment to be with Arnold and to make matters worse. She still her hold on him. She was still humiliating her after all these years. Pathetic, Helga G. Pataki was pathetic. She couldn't take it anymore. She was fed up with everything being out of her control. It felt like she was a kid again when her dad ignored her existence and her mom was too drunk to notice her. Her saving grace was Arnold, who was constantly drooling over Ruth or Lila or anyone but her. It was all the same.

"Do you think Lila will be okay?" Arnold asked softly.

God, even now after releasing years of tension from one kiss he was still stuck up her perfect ass.

"I don't care Arnold. I just want to be done with everything."

"Everything like what?"

"Her and you living in fucking la-la land. She could be Rhonda's killer and you are still want to bang her after you just kissed me. I'm an idiot for thinking you ever had feelings for me when she still has your brain wrapped in her manicured fingers."

"Why would you ever assume I don't have feelings for you? I kissed you for Pete's sake. You were running around doing God knows what with Sid, so I didn't say anything. Don't be ridiculous."

"Criminey, I saw the way you fell right back into her trap as soon as she batted her eyelashes and cried a bit. She's playing you. If you think she isn't involved with Rhonda's death your denser than I thought." Helga continued, "Sid has nothing to do with anything. We were NEVER together. For your information I was tired of waiting around for you."

"WAITING AROUND FOR ME! I have been pining over you jealous for MONTHS Helga. I have been watching you parade Sid around in my face. Of course, I went to Lila. I wanted to feel wanted and appreciated but that doesn't matter.

"I have been watching you not realize how beautiful you are everyday. Do you know that the dimple on your right cheek makes my day? Do you know that all those poems you wrote I still have and read? Do you know I've never met anyone with as much passion and conviction as you looking for Rhonda's killer? I also love your spaghetti and I love how your hair falls when you tie in a loose bun. Do you know how fucking amazing you are? You are perfect and infuriating all at the same time. All I know now is I don't care about Sid or Lila right now. All that matters to me is you Helga. What do you want?"

"What are you asking me?"

"I'm asking if you want to be with me like I've been wanting to be with you all this time. There's feelings here and I want to explore them. I have been mad at Sid for awhile now and I couldn't figure out why. Then I realized, he was closer at having something I thought I never could have: You. That kiss was special and I know it was risky but I'm tired of running from my feelings. Tell me what you want and I'll respect whatever decision you make."

Helga's heart was beating out of chest. Arnold Shortman actually wanted to be with her, like date her, like do actual couple things. She was excited and frustrated at the same time. People were dropping like flies in the city and now was the time Arnold decided to make his declaration. She couldn't think straight. She forgot how to breath or where she was. Arnold Shortman, the man she has loved since the 4th grade just said he was interested in her and she wasn't daydreaming in the middle of her love manifestos .

Arnold could sense her general not-there-ness and asked," Helga, if you need time to-"

Before he could finish the annoying ringtone of her phone went off. The annoying three toned beep followed by:

 _Call me beep me if you wanna reach me_

 _Doesn't matter when, doesn't matter where_

Surprisingly Helga was a girl who liked Kim Possible but she definitely needed to change that ringtone. She looked at the ID it was Sid. What could he possibly want? He was riding her about staying off the case so what could it be?

"Hello?" she answered quietly. To her shock it wasn't the deep voice she was used to hearing. Instead she had a slightly nasally, alto voice.

Helga protested, "Harold? Why are using Sid's phone? For the last time I will not bring you any Mr. Fudgey Bars."

"It's Sid Helga. We got into a fire fight tonight and he got hit. He wants to see you though."

"Oh my god! Is he okay?"

"What? Yea. The vest caught most of them but a couple strays got under his vest. Trust me, he's too stubborn to die right now."

"What hospital?"

"Hillside General. See you there Blondie."

She scoffed at her old nickname and hung up quickly. She felt like she had just gotten hit by a truck. What could possibly shock her next?

"Sid's in the hospital. He wants to see me. I got to go Football Head." Helga rushed out and headed to the hospital.

~/~

Hospitals always freaked Helga out. The lights were blinding and everything was boringly white beside the obnoxious green scrubs that the doctors wore. She remembered being in the hospital a few times for her dad and to visit Sid but she absolutely feared being in the hospital herself. Being completely helpless, in pain, and completely at the mercy of men who taught they were gods and performed miracles daily made her nauseous. Call her cynical, but anyone who had even the slight power of balancing life and death in their hands could always abuse it.

She got to the front desk and stood behind a man who was apparently experiencing gallstones and needed immediate help. The receptionist was obviously tired of having people complain to her about how much pain they were in because really was it going to make their wait any shorter? Chances are a no.

She politely turned the man back to his seat in the waiting room with the fakest smile she had probably forced for the hundredth time that day. Helga stepped up to the desk and gave her Sid's name. Luckily he was only on the 2nd floor. Once off the elevator Helga headed to his room to find Harold at his side.

She was shocked to see him like that. Sid had one bandage on his shoulder and upper arm from what she could tell. He was covered in a thick blanket with an IV connect to one arm and a bandage on the other. He looked uncomfortable. His normal blushed face was slightly pale, his hair was all over the place, and his eyes were slightly enlarged. Harold had underestimated things. He had really been hurt tonight. Luckily he was conscious but laying down with his legs elevated.

She rushed to his side and said,"Sid. Jesus, what the hell happened to you?"

His voice was soft and low,"Casualty that's all. Better question: What happened to you? You look like crap."

Says the boy who had multiple gunshot wounds. She pulled out a small mirror from her bag. God, she did look horrible. Even for it being late. Her hair was messy and her makeup was smeared. Her eyes were red and puffy. She looked like how she felt if she wanted to be honest.

"Criminey, it's after midnight. And you're one to talk. Have you seen yourself?" Helga retorted and attempted to wipe her smeared make up off.

"On the contrary, I know for a fact I would make the hottest corpse known to man. Anyway, I'm fine Helga."

Harold introjected,"You got shot twice, went into shock, had surgery to remove the bullets, and have a fractured rib. You're far from fine Sidney."

Sid rolled his eyes and said,"Whatever Harold. I've been worse."

Harold was visibly upset. His nostrils flared and his ears turned red. Helga could see the vein flaring in his fully muscle neck when he spoke, "You've never almost died. Your heart stopped. You were off your game tonight and those men tried to kill you. Stop being the hero all the time. You could've lost your life tonight."

The sadness flowed through her veins and deadened her mind. It was a poison to her spirit, dulling her killing off her other emotions until it was the only one that remained. It was as if a black mist had settled upon her and refused to shift. She couldn't lose someone else to this Rhonda investigation. She had already lost Rhonda herself and God knows where Phoebe has been during all of this. One more person was too many.

A single tear slid down from her warm, blue eyes, followed by another one, and another one, until soon, a steady stream of salty tears flowed it's way down her pale cheek, releasing the sadness and sorrow that has been held inside of her for all this time but still she did not make a sound. She was never good at crying in style, not like the girls on the movie who would cry and still manage to look beautiful. She was an uglier crier, which was part of the reason why she never did it. Crying made her weak, it made her vulnerable, it made her feel emotions period. She hated it. The thing with pain though is you never know it's coming until it's already knocking at your door. You think you've experienced the worst pain of your life until it comes back rearing its ugly head again.

This was pain. The thought of Sid or Arnold or Harold or Gerald or anyone else dying hurt her to her core.

Her voice was low and shaky as she wiped the wetness from her cheeks,"Sid, you need to stop."

Sid tried to comfort her,"Helga, stop crying please. I am fine."

It was futile. She had made up her mind.

"You need to stop! Do you fucking hear me? Drop the Rhonda case. We all would do a lot better that way. Do what you have to but drop it before someone else dies."

She thought of the mysterious phone call from the shark and then thought of Lila saying a storm was coming. What storm could be worse than this one she was experiencing right now?

"It's my job Helga. I protect and serve. A few bullets won't stop me. I'll be back in a couple weeks. I can't stop. We're so close to catching this son of a bitch."

Harold chimed in, "She's right Sid. Rhonda's case is bigger than just the two of us need to send it to the big dogs. It's gotten too big and too dangerous. Everyday a new body is found. Someone wants us to stop looking at any cost. I know you don't care about getting hurt but what about Helga or someone close to you like me. When you were lying there bleeding on that ground I thought I had lost a limb. You're my partner. You're my best friend. Think of how it would feel if they came for me next. They obviously are sending a message."

Sid replied, "Damnit. We can't let the stupid mob silence us again. We don't even know who the real killer of Rhonda is but she was our friend as fucked up as a person as she was. Harold you loved her. Don't you want to look the man, that killed the love of your life, in the eye and know he'll spend the rest of his life behind bars. If we catch who's behind Rhonda's murder we can stop all of these deaths."

Helga said, "If you aren't going to give up at least tell me what you wanted."

"Helga, I need you and Arnold to get out of Hillwood. I know for a fact it's not safe for either of you. I have two plane tickets to anywhere in the county and guaranteed protection. Until everything is done with, no one is safe."

Thoughts kept playing back in her head.

" _There's a war coming in Hillwood."_

" _She's dead. She's dead."_

" _Tell, Arnold the shark is looking for him."_

" _No one is going to be safe now."_

" _Stop digging Helga!"_

" _Helga, what do you want?"_

Her brain was hurting. It felt like the room was spinning. She had never been out of Hillwood in her entire life and now she was forced to leave.

Harold broke the silence,"Even in her death Rhonda is turning our lives into hell. What did she do?"

Sid was serious and stern with her once again,"That's what we need to find out Harold. The sooner we do, the safer the people of this city will be. Now Helga, do you understand what I'm telling you?I don't take threats to my friend's lives as a joke. I will have an officer escort you both safely to the airport right now. Please don't be stubborn like usual. I need to know you're safe to do my job properly."

She could tell by the concerned look in his eyes that he was very serious and that the situation was very urgent. She just couldn't think right now. Everything was moving too fast.

Helga responded rushed and nervous, "Yes, yes I, I understand. I just need a minute. I'll be back."

There was a bathroom down the hall. She just need to make sure this was all real and that she wasn't going crazy. She needed time to process.

She went into the bathroom and didn't bother going into any of the five stalls. She walked over to one of the sinks and splashed water on her face, hoping that would wake her up from this nightmare. Unfortunately, the cold water only helped her wash her foundation off. Now she could really she how much Rhonda's death affected her, how everything in the past few months affected her. She looked like she hadn't slept properly in month. Knowing Helga, that was probably true.

She shuffled through her bag for her foundation and powder. Even if her possible death was something pressing right now she didn't want to look like she was already dead. She looked in the mirror and began to apply her primer.

From the corner of eye she saw someone come out of the fourth stall. Of course, people come out of stalls. It was a female public restroom in a hospital, but still her heart was beating fast and she was shaking trying to sweep the brush over her cheeks.

Her fears were concerned when the mysterious figure said, "Hello Helga."

Helga could have literally shit herself. Something about that voice sounded off.

"Whoever you are stop messing with me or you'll be personally meeting Old Bessie here?"

The figure was behind her in a matter of seconds, "I'm sorry Helga but you have to come with me."

Her palate was dropped on the floor and everything went black.

~/~

One hour later….

"Sid, she probably went home to pack or something." Harold attempted to comfort his nervous partner. Despite the pain medication pumping through Sid's veins he had become hypervigilant ever since Helga had left his hospital bed side.

"She said she'd come back. If Helga Pataki says she'll come right back, she's going to come right back. Something's wrong, I feel it." Sid immediately tried to get up out of his bed and rip the IV from his arm.

He was only met with Harold forcing him to lay back down and sharp pain in his side.

Harold scolded his clearly damaged partner,"You're on enough pain medication to sedate a man twice your size and you still wanting to go out and put on your badge right now. How you're even awake and moving right now is beyond me. Besides, even if she was hurt what could you do? You have a fractured rib and gunshot wounds. You're not even in any condition to protect yourself. If you leave this hospital bed you can reopen the wounds and bleed out. I'm not letting that happen. Calm down Sid."

"I know something's up Harold. I need to know if she's okay. At least let me call and check on her then I promise I'll rest."

Harold handed Sid his phone. Within two minutes Sid had already dialed Helga's number and got no answer. Sid called three times and the same result happened. No answer. No Helga.

Sid dialed Arnold's number. He hoped she was with him or he had at least seen her in the past hour.

"Arnold, hey man. Have you seen Helga?"

"No, she left to go see you. Are you okay?"

"Yea, sure, I'm great. You definitely haven't seen her? She didn't call you in the past or mention going somewhere after coming to see me?"

"Um, considering it's almost midnight and most things are closed, no. I haven't seen or heard from her Sid. Is everything okay? Is Helga hurt?"

"That's why I was calling to see if she was with you. I'll call you back in a second." Sid hung up and his phone and throw his head in his head. "Shit! I should've protected her."

"She could be in the food court or something Sid. Stop worrying.:

"How can I not be worrying? Big Gino basically confirmed there was a hit out on everyone I love and I'm stuck in the hospital!"

"Listen, you need to calm down or you'll make yourself have a heart attack. I'll go check and see if her car is still here and look around for her. She's probably fine." Harold spoke as he got up and left the room.

 _She's probably fine_ , Sid repeated to himself for every moment his partner was gone. It had been 45 minutes and Harold wasn't back yet. He couldn't sit there being useless. He willed himself out of bed, despite the pain, and dragged his IV with him to hallway.

He remembered she said needed a minute so she couldn't have gone far if she was planning on coming right back. There was a women's bathroom to the left of him. Sid tried to slip inside without anyone noticing. Sid could admit this wasn't his first time being in a female restroom. He used to be quite the pervert in high school. Boy, was he glad he grew out of that.

The women at the sinks gasped as he struggle to drag himself into the bathroom. His rib and everything else was killing him. When he got back to his room he had to tell the nurse to up his pain med dosage.

He said in a strained voice, "Hillside PD."

The bathroom cleared immediately, which gave him full range to see the entire bathroom. Then he saw it, there was a brown powder on the floor. From the looks of it it was most likely make up. If he knew women, he knew that women never dropped their make up even in a car going 95 mph. Something out of the order must have happened.

There was no clue that the powder was Helga's make up. It could have been anyone. Still in his gut he knew something happened.

"Reminiscing on your creep days Sid? Come on man. Some ladies complained about a shady looking man in their bathroom. They wanted security but I explained I was a cop. I assumed it was a patient who wandered in but I'm surprised to see it was you." A familiar voice echoed through the walls of the bathroom.

"Harold, she was here. I know it. There's make up on the floor that's been obviously left there. It's her make up. I know it."

Harold coaxed Sid, "It's the pain medicine kicking in. You're starting to be out of it. You had a long day and need rest."

At this point Sid was grabbing onto the bathroom sink to even stand. His pain was getting to him but he needed to know if she was okay.

"No, she was here. I feel it in my gut Harold. That's her make up. I just have a feeling."

"It's a public bathroom. That could be anyone's make up Sid. She's not anywhere in this hospital but I'm sure she'll turn up since her car is still here. She probably went to take a walk." Harold dragged his partner back to his room and put him in his bed.

Sid demanded, "Give me my phone."

"You need-"

"GIVE ME MY PHONE HAROLD!"

Harold did as he instructed and put the phone in his hand. This was the last time he was going to call her. Sid winced in pain as the third dial tone rang. A stain of red was forming on his hospital gown. He was bleeding through the bandages.

"Shit, Sid you're bleeding. You reopened the wound. I'll get the nurse." Harold hit the page button on the bed and headed out to find an available nurse.

Sid knew he was bleeding and frankly didn't care. He'd bleed out before anyone ever hurt another person he cared about.

Once again he got no answer. This wasn't good. This wasn't good at all.

 **Author's Note: What do you all think? Who do you think took Helga? This story is coming to a close soon so we'll soon find out who the killer is. Anyone have any theories? I'd love to hear them!**

 **Until next time,**

 **Brie**


	26. Restraints

**Chapter 26: Restraints**

The next day Arnold was frantic. He had woken up and Helga was nowhere to be found. He checked her room and her bed looked like it hadn't been slept him. He couldn't smell the familiar scent of her body wash this morning when he woke up. The apartment felt cold and empty without her.

He thought of what would have happened if she never went to the hospital. If she would've said yes, if they would've made love all night and into the morning. If only she didn't have to go see Sid.

Arnold himself had intended to see Sid the next morning when the visiting hours were in full effect. Plus seeing Helga and Sid together made him sick. Sid still had feelings for Helga. Even with Sid's recent ailment that was still an undeniable fact from the phone call yesterday. The way she dropped everything ,including him, just to see Sid didn't make Arnold feel like he was special. Arnold wasn't sure what that meant for him and Helga either. Did she still want Sid after what he told her?

Speaking of Sid, his call yesterday sounded urgent. He figured she'd be home in the morning and that maybe Sid was just a little out of it from his medication. Arnold had tried calling her to no avail but got no answer. This was so unlike her. Even when she was upset with him she ALWAYS answered her phone or sent a text.

10:45 AM.

He was tired of waiting for her. The man that had seen her last made Arnold's blood boil but he may be able to be the only one to help him find Helga. He still considered Sid a friend after all and he did owe him a visit in the hospital at least.

Arnold headed out into his car and intended on going straight to the hospital. His head was swimming: Where was Helga? Why did she disappear? Did Sid have something to do with this? Was she hurt? Was she okay?

He was so deep into his thoughts that he didn't go at a green light, causing honks from all of the cars from behind him to erupt. He shook his head and got back into control of both himself and the car. She's probably fine, he thought to himself. Even if she wasn't he needed to stop thinking about her being in any danger right now. The last thing Arnold needed was to get into an accident and have his insurance go through the roof.

He arrived at the hospital and swiftly got directed to Sid's room by a nice receptionist. He was in the second floor of the emergency wing. Sid must've been hurt pretty bad if he had been rushed to the emergency room right away.

Arnold knocked before entering and was met with a surprising sight. It was Hillwood's very own Sid, the Kid bandaged up and strapped to the bed. Sid looked a little disoriented to say the least or like he didn't sleep at all last night. To say the most he looked like he endured war combat on both of his arms and a pretty hard hit to the ribs. Arnold couldn't believe the man he was looking at was the same kid who was afraid of everything. He now was a man who could endure multiple gunshots and still not have a care in the world.

"Arnold", Sid attempted to sit up and rest his back against his pillows. Arnold could see the strain even that was putting on his body. Sid gritted his teeth when he moved to sit up then quickly returned to a smile. "What's going on man? I'm surprised you even came to see me."

"Yea, had to check on my old friend." Arnold smiled and cursed himself inwardly. Part of that was true. He did want to check on Sid because he was his friend but he also wanted to find out what had happened to Helga.

Sid spoke in a dry voice, "Nice that you came but you're going to have to leave."

"Nonsense," Arnold took off his jacket and sat down at the chair next to Sid's bedside. "I JUST got here Sid. Trust me, you aren't wasting any of my time if that's what you're worried about."

"I don't mean leave the hospital," Sid jiggled the restraints around his wrist in annoyance. "I mean leave Hillwood. There's a hit out for your life. You need to get out of town now if you know what's good for you."

Arnold was determined to find out what Sid know about Helga. "I'm not leaving, especially not without Helga. Where is she Sid?"

Sid rolled his eyes and said in annoyance, "What is up with everyone not caring about their livelihood?! And do you think if I knew where she was I would be cuffed to a stupid hospital bed. Harold did this so I wouldn't try to leave while he was gone." Sid took a deep breath and said, "Someone took her, okay and I think I know who."

From the looks of it Sid had reached his breaking point and was desperate to get out of the hospital. Arnold remember his germaphobia and considered that lying in a hospital full of disease people had to be mortifying to Sid.

Arnold yelled, "WHO? WHO TOOK HELGA?"

Sid looked even more frustrated. He ran his hand through his disheveled hair and responded, "Do you think I'm really going to tell you that so you can get yourself killed?" Sid scoffed and said, "You don't have to worry about Helga. I will handle it if you uncuff me Arnold. Please, I have to get out of here."

Arnold felt genuinely bad. Of course he was Sid's friend but as a friend sometimes you had to do things that your friend wouldn't agree with. Sid would be massacred if he left his hospital bed to go fight handle or fight anyone.

"I can't do that Sid. You're still hurt. I know you love Helga and you want to keep her safe but you're in no condition to save anyone right now."

The words sounded so forced coming out of Arnold's mouth. The idea of Sid loving anyone, especially Helga was still a new concept to Arnold. Apparently it wasn't a new concept to Sid. His nostrils were flaring and his pupils dilated. He was beyond pissed from what Arnold could tell.

Sid snapped, "If you loved her you'd leave town and help me do my damn job. She could be dying right now and there's no one there to save her. This isn't the time for you to play hero. Let the professionals like me do our jobs."

Arnold was offended that he would even question his feelings for Helga at this point. "Don't sit here and play who loves her more just because I won't do what what you want. I don't have to prove shit to you Sid."

"And there goes the jealousy. I know your ego is hurt but I'll have you know I stepped back because I knew she wanted you Arnold. I know you probably think I'm an ass but I'm not. I had Helga right there and ready for me to take but I didn't do it out of respect for the feelings you and her share." Sid scratched his forehead with his free hand and said, "She's all yours if you don't screw up this time. For your information, screwing up would include getting yourself fucking killed for being a jealous idiot who doesn't listen to their friends when they tell you they have your best interest at heart."

Despite the nice apology, Arnold had made up his mind. "I appreciate that but I'm still not going to let you go Sid. You're no better a help to Helga than me if you're injured."

Sid flailed around in the bed and pulled at the hand cuffs. Arnold could see the desperation and pain in Sid's brown eyes. "Jesus, Arnold come on! Let me settle things with Gino once and for all. You have to let me out of here. I don't care if I die. Sitting here while he could be torturing Helga and planning on killing more people is killing me enough. I'm the only one who has a chance at saving her. Help me, please." Sid continued on, "Uncuff me, take the plane tickets, and get the hell out of here. Trust me."

Not without Helga, he said to himself again.

Just when Sid finished begging, Harold walked in the room. Arnold hadn't seen Harold since the funeral but this wasn't time to be two buddies catching up. Harold would make sure Sid would stay put and remain safe to heal. Arnold could turn the job over to him.

Harold greeted Arnold with a stern hand shake and said, "Hey, Arnold. I didn't expect you to be here. I was just coming to check on my partner. If he asked you to uncuff him I'm sorry for that."

"Ha no problem. He was no trouble at all. I was just leaving." Arnold headed towards the door. He looked back to Sid, who had a heartbroken look on his face, and frowned. He wished he could've helped Sid but one more death was not necessary.

As much as he wanted to be a friend to Sid he couldn't let his blood be on his hands if he ended up dead going after whoever took Helga. Wasn't he really being a true friend by saving his life? Arnold hoped it was right decision/

He'd rather look for Helga on his own. At least he could say he tried. He hoped she wasn't being tortured or better yet killed by now. This whole situation was fucked up.

Arnold nearly ran to his car, only to be stopped by a familiar figure.

"Lila?" Arnold was shocked to see her here. She and Sid weren't even close friends. Was she following him? Helga was right, Lila was playing him. In fact, she was playing everyone.

Her cute smile didn't foul him this time. Though her voice was as kind as ever when she said, "Arnold. Hey, I was here to visit a friend and I see you here. Who are you visiting? Oh dear, I sure hope it isn't Helga?"

"No, just a friend." Arnold stepped towards his car and reached for the door handle. "Listen Lila, I have somewhere to be."

Lila was quick to grab Arnold's wrist and say, "Oh Arnold you're just so stressed. Maybe you could come back to my place…" Arnold suddenly felt a hand stroking his crotch. He shivered as her hand ran up and down the front of his pants. Lila said in an amorous voice, "Maybe I could help with that."

Arnold smacked her hand away quickly, "You can't be serious! You're offering me sexual favors in a hospital parking lot just to distract me. I'm done with you Lila."

Arnold was quick to put his key in the door of his car. Before he could turn the key he felt something hard thump on his head. He felt his vision blur and his body falling to the cold, hard ground. As he went down he could still see her pretty face, shrouded in a black veil.

 _He sung a familiar song in his head as he went down: Black as the devil, hot as hell, pure as an angel, sweet as love._

~/~

Eugene Horowitz usually didn't have visitors at this hour.

He bite his lip, nervously as he continued to fill out paperwork. His hands were sweating and so slippery that he could barely grasp his pen.

He was a frantic mess without Lila. She scheduled his appointments for him and made sure he had his all too noticeable lisp under control. Lately, she had been out of office more for personal issues.

What was he supposed to do without her? He could barely think straight. He had scheduled two appointments at the same time and had to disappoint one of his clients. At the board meeting he was trembling so much, the meeting was rescheduled for next Tuesday. The board chalked it up to him still mourning the loss of Rhonda but Eugene knew the truth. He was full of anxiety all the time.

Lila also made sure he took his anxiety medication on time. She also made sure his looks didn't stray to the delivery man, the new intern, or any of his male employees. She was the reason he was Eugene Horowitz, CEO of Horowitz Inc but lately he didn't want to be that anymore. He just wanted to be free. He wanted to be himself without the pressure. He couldn't tell Lila that. She pushed him so hard to be a great man. He wanted to be a great man, he really did but what was the cost?

A hard knock came on his door, causing him to jump and knock his paperwork on the floor.

Where was Lila when he needed her most?, he thought.

As soon as he opened the door a figure barged in. It was familiar man. The man who he hated more than himself at this point.

Eugene said indignantly, "Frankie! What are you doing here? You were banned from the company after what you did! I'm calling security."

Frankie walked passed Eugene into his office with paperwork in hand, "I'm a lawyer remember. I'm well versed in the art of persuasion. I already convinced your stupid security guards to let me pass."

"You need to L-"

Frankie firmly gestured towards the seats at Eugene's desk and said sternly, "Sit down Eugene."

An even more infuriated Harold said, "You cannot tell me what to do in my own office Mr. George!"

Frankie wasn't backing down. He stepped close to Eugene, so close their chests could've touched and said once again, "Sit. Down."

Eugene, like a kid being told to retreat to his time out corner, quickly sat down behind his desk. Frankie made himself comfortable on the other side and dropped the paperwork on Eugene's desk.

Frankie crossed his legs and said, "Great now that I have your attention let's move on to why I'm here."

"I don't understand why you came back Frankie. Haven't you done enough harm." Eugene crossed his arms. hoping to seem less anxious. At least he couldn't fidget when the man that ruined his life was around.

Frankie smirked and replied saying, "If you are referring to screwing your girlfriend and getting her pregnant then yes, I did do that. That's beside the point. I have information for you that's important."

Eugene gritted his teeth. His right eye was twitching by then. "Yes, YOU screwed my girlfriend. My dead girlfriend so that is absolutely the point at hand here Frankie. You aided her in having an affair when we had just agreed to be engaged. To make matters worse you got her pregnant. Don't barge in here like you're innocent."

"Is that what they told you to make yourself sleep better? Rhonda didn't agree to be engaged to you. She was forced by your pathetic secretary, who by the way threatened my life if I didn't stay away from Rhonda." Frankie rolled his eyes and said , "I guess Rhonda wasn't good enough for her. Now she's going after my secretaries, my clients, and my assistants. So yea, I'm hardly innocent but I know damn sure I'm a better person than you and your psychotic secretary."

Eugene retorted, "You're a liar. Any man with decency and honesty would never have a relationship with a woman who isn't his. Rhonda loved me. She was happy to get married and plan a big wedding. It was her dream. Lila did no such thing. She's the sweetest girl I know. She would never threaten, let alone kill anyone."

Frankie snapped back saying, "Oh my god, you're as delusional as Rhonda said. Rhonda was NEVER yours. She never loved you Eugene and if we're being honest here, you never loved her either. She wanted out of the marriage agreement. She wanted nothing to do with you. She told me how miserable she was. How you wouldn't touch her at night. How you didn't give her any kind of affection. She told me everything. She only wanted to be with you for your money. It was what her parents wanted for her in life: to marry the richest and most successful man in town."

"Watch what you say to the richest and most powerful man in town Frankie. I can have you ruined." Eugene always felt better when he threw around his title. It usual shut people up but not this time.

Frankie laughed out loud at this statement, "Do you hear yourself? If you honestly think you're the most powerful man in town then there's no saving you. Hell, your so called riches aren't even your own. You know what, Rhonda made you. Without her you wouldn't have the image you have now because God knows the people of Hillwood would never throw all their money at a company who had a gay CEO. Rhonda was a trophy for you to look good, to look normal everyday. You didn't love her. You didn't even want to sleep in the same bed at night, but she discovered the truth that could end everything for you. Don't you throw your weight around, as if you have any in this situation."

Eugene was angry. He stamped his feet, nearly jumping out of his chair and yelled, "I built this company from the ground up on my own! I didn't need Rhonda or anyone else to help me. Stop accusing me of being a homosexual. Maybe the reason I didn't touch her at night was because of her disgusting, drug habit. She was on pills every single night. I'm sure she forgot to tell you that part."

Frankie seemed unbothered by Eugene's apparent outburst. "Oh please, are you that blind to believe all of this money is really from investors? Your success is made up. It's a sham. And so what if she had a drug problem? That didn't mean she had to be thrown from a building. Her drug problem doesn't make you any better for pretending to be something you're not this entire time. You have been lying to yourself and the people of Hillwood for years. No matter how much denial you may have and how much coaching your secretary may give, you'll always want to be with men and no one can change that."

This time Eugene hopped out of his chair and pushed all his paperwork onto Frankie's lap in angry. He shouted out, "I DIDN'T KILL HER AND I DON'T LIKE MEN!"

"The not liking men part is debatable. I know you didn't kill her Eugene. You can stop torturing yourself and thinking you're to blame. You were being played this whole time. You were just too blind and too focused on your image to see it." Frankie brushed the paperwork on the floor and kept his same composure. He was a man with a mission.

Eugene asked in confusion, "Played by who?"

"Lila. Rhonda came to me in need of a lawyer to build a case against your company. She had discovered that money was invested in the company was not good money. She did her research and stayed around to figure out who could be helping the mob bring so much money in and out. Rhonda was appalled at the company's underground involvement in the mafia. All of your so called hard earned money is blood money Eugene. It was all thanks to Lila. Rhonda knew that for a fact. Why do you think she's so emotionally invested into your company and making your image one that's the most suitable? She wants to make sure the mob keeps getting the money to outflow. When she figured out Rhonda knew what she was doing she tried her best to silence her peacefully but she wouldn't stop. Now she's trying to silence me too by killing and torturing my co-workers. She already killed the woman I love. What's left for me to lose?"

Eugene said in disbelief, "That's ridiculous. Lila doesn't have that kind of power."

"You gave her that power when you gave her your trust. You have been played. I don't know the reason why she's involved with the mafia or how it came to happen but I know she's a snake. I have proof." Frankie slid the paperwork across his desk to Eugene.

He continued talking as Eugene quickly read over the documents, "This is everything Rhonda gave me to form a solid case against Horowitz Inc. Now you can either help me take the mafia down or I can unleash a legal nightmare upon you and your good name that you have never even seen before."

Eugene threw his head in his hands and started to sob. The paperwork fell to the ground as he let it all drop.

Eugene, no longer acting as the CEO of his company should, was having a break down as they spoke. "How could I be so blind? How could I be so stupid? Oh poor Rhonda, I'm so sorry."

Frankie reassured Eugene. "It's okay Eugene. You can make it up to her now. Let me take down Horowitz Inc. It's what she would have wanted. You help me, I make sure you don't do any time for this."

"Yes, I-I'll help you." Eugene wiped his face free of tears. "I'm sorry about the baby Frankie. She was a great woman."

"Yea, I'm sorry too." You could hear the sorrow in Frankie's voice.

Eugene knew what he had to do. "I want to clear my name and my company's name. I don't want all of the success I've gotten to be paid in bones. But before I help you, I have to make a call."

Eugene picked up the phone and knew it was the right decision to make.

~/~

The couple basked in their afterglow and lay together in bed. Gerald and Phoebe had just had another romantic night. Phoebe had moved in with Gerald and she felt much safer but she was having nightmares more and more frequently. Even with Gerald's strong arms wrapped around her she couldn't get the memories out of her head.

Gerald gave Phoebe a kiss on her shoulder. She stared at the ceiling and seemed to be in trance. He hated when she got like this. She wasn't telling him something and it ate him up inside. They had promised to not keep secrets and to be open with each other but even after they rekindled their romance Phoebe wasn't the same as she was before. Something had happened to her that Gerald needed to know if they were going to move forward with their relationship.

Gerald placed his arms around Phoebe's small frame tightly and gave her a couple light kisses on her collar bone. She didn't even respond much to his affection anymore. What was going on with her?

Gerald said her name, hoping that would be enough to snap her out of it, "Phoebe?"

No response.

He tried again. "Phoebe."

Again no response.

He yelled so loud in her ear there would be no way she couldn't hear him, "PHOEBE!"

Phoebe jerked a bit and fell out of her trance. She breathed heavier as she pulled closer into Gerald's chest.

Gerald kissed her on the forehead and said, "What is going on in that big brain of yours?"

Phoebe said bluntly, "Nothing. I was present during our love making."

Gerald smirked, reminiscing the night they had spent together. As much as those memories turned him on that wasn't his main focus at hand. "That's not what I'm talking about. You have been acting weird and going into weird dazes. I am worried about you. You know you can tell me anything. I will always be here for you."

"Nothing Babe. I promise I'm fine." Her voice was once again dry and monotone. That's when Gerald knew she was lying.

Gerald shifted so that his eyes locked directly with Phoebe's, "Don't lie to me. Don't you ever lie to me. Let me help you through whatever it is. I love you. I know I hadn't shown it before but you're the most important person to me in my life. Please tell me what's bothering you."

Phoebe let out a sigh and began twirling her hair around her fingers, "I think I may have PTSD. I keep having flashbacks."

Gerald was immediately concerned. "From where? What happened?

"I, I- it all happened when I was working with Frankie alone one night."

Gerald, who was overprotective, was ready to spring into action. "Oh my God. Did he rape you?! I'm going to fucking kill him."

Phoebe began telling her story. "No, no Gerald. He didn't do anything. It all happened so fast. I was filing papers away for him at the front desk then these men came in and asked if I knew where he was. Of course I knew but the men looked dangerous so I said no. Then before I knew it they grabbed me, slapped me, and kicked me and told me if I didn't tell them where Frankie was they'd kill me. I begged them to stop but they kept beating me so I gave up. They dragged me into the back room, held a knife to my throat, and they said if Frankie didn't give them the file they'd kill me. I felt the cold metal on my neck and the bloody beads starting to form on my throat. I thought the man was going to slit my throat but then Frankie did as they asked. He pulled a file out from his bookcase and gave it to them. They let me free and left. All I could do is lie on the floor and cry, hoping to wake up from the nightmare.

She recalled more of that night. "Everything hurt. They beat me so bad my ribs turned purple. Frankie took me straight to the hospital and told me to keep quiet about everything I saw that night. He paid for my medical expenses and gave me time off. I didn't tell anyone about the attack, not even Helga. I stayed in the house for weeks without any contact with anyone. I started having nightmares of being attacked over and over again.

"It was like reliving that night repeatedly. It was finally due for me to go back to work. The day I came back the shooting happened. They came back to kill Frankie and to kill me for knowing too much. I didn't know anything at all, at least nothing from the file Frankie gave them. The police showed up in time thank god. I started having flashbacks again but this time during the day.

"Then later that week I found Thumper… Dead. I just couldn't breath. I didn't know what to do. I tried to tell Helga but she wouldn't understand so I distanced myself from her and everyone else until I knew it would be safe. The police said they would put me on surveillance to keep me safe from whoever was looking for me. Right now as we speak there's police sitting outside disguised in order to keep me safe. I hate that I was brought into whatever mess my boss had. I can't sleep. I can't think. I can't even live a normal life without remembering the attack and seeing Thumper's bloody body."

By the end of the story Phoebe was in tears, "I, I don't want you dead too just for being around me Gerald. I love you so much."

Gerald couldn't believe his girlfriend of so many years had been through something so traumatic and she didn't tell him about it. He was both amazed and scared at the time. He was amazed she could endure life walking around with all this pain but scared that someone would be coming for the woman he loved.

"Babe," He held Phoebe so tight in his arms that he never wanted to let her go. She sobbed hard into his bare chest. "You should've told me. I would have been there. You wouldn't have had to go through this on your own."

Phoebe pulled her head back from his chest. She was shaking but managed to say, "I d-didn't know ho-how to tell you. We were b,broken up."

Gerald meant every word when he said, "You listen to me. No matter if we are together or not in the future you tell me what's going on your life. Phoebe, we can get you some therapy or whatever you need to feel normal again. Don't worry about me or us right now. Worry about getting yourself better."

Phoebe sobbed again, "I swear I don't know anything Gerald. All I know is someone was trying to kill my boss. I don't know why or who was trying to."

Gerald rubbed her hair and placed a finger to her lips, "Shhh I believe you Phoebe, I do. You don't have to explain anything. None of it was your fault. You listen to me first thing tomorrow we're going to get you to a therapist. Anything that will help you become the Phoebe I love again. You don't have to worry about a thing." Gerald pulled Phoebe into his chest to hold her again. He kissed the top of her head softly and said, "As long as I'm here no one will ever hurt you again."

The moment was heavy and full of many emotions. Phoebe felt trapped in reliving that terrible night again and all Gerald wished was to bare her pain for her. Gerald said nothing more and let Phoebe cry into his chest until she drifted off to sleep. He held her even after she fell asleep. She needed to feel safe and he could definitely provide that for her.

Gerald snuck out of bed 30 minutes after she had fallen to sleep to use the bathroom. He had neglected his phone all day while he was with her. Once he was done in the bathroom he got his phone from the nightstand and took into into the living room to not disturb his sleeping girlfriend.

He had several text messages and missed calls. Most of them from work, begging him to publish a certain story in this month's paper. Sometimes he hated being editor-in-chief.

The most recent call he got was from Eugene. He hadn't heard from him since that last interview about Rhonda's drug habit happened. He still felt bad for the poor guy. Gerald wouldn't know how to function if Phoebe had been murdered. His conscience wouldn't let him move on without calling Eugene back.

He dialed the number and was met with an answer upon the second dial tone.

That was fast, Gerald thought. It must be important.

"Hey Eugene. How are you holding up?"

"I'm taking it day by day. How's Phoebe?"

"She's- she's okay. Listen I can't talk long so did you need anything man?"

"Yeah, actually I did. How'd you like to break the story of the year Gerald."

Gerald smirked, " I'm listening."

This was going to be good, Gerald could feel it.

~/~

"Let me out of here Criminey!" Helga's yells echoed throughout the hollow warehouse. She had never been more scared in her entire life than when she woke up chained to a metal pole in an abandoned warehouse. She was certain she was finally going to die for all the times she didn't close her big, fat mouth.

She had been yelling for 15 minutes straight and no one seemed around to hear her. She was basically hopeless and if those chains were tied around her any more tightly her ribs would snap in half for sure.

She had just about given up when she heard footsteps.

"Hey! Help! Let me out of here!" She yelled as the footsteps neared, only to meet her with worse nightmare.

Arnold was unconscious being carried by two men and next to them, there was Lila clicking her evil heels.

"What did you do to him? Get your hands off of him!" She screamed as she struggled to get out of the chains with no success.

Her beloved was unconscious and currently being tied to a metal pole next to hers and all she could do is watch. Lila watched too as the large men bound the chains around Arnold.

Lila stood stiffly and void of emotion. It pissed Helga off how she had no expression on her face what so ever, like she wanted this to happen. If she could punch her in the face she would have but that wasn't an option. She chose to do the next best thing which was spit right in her pretty little face.

The wad of spit landed right on Lila's cheek. Lila smirked and wiped the wetness from her face.

Lila said in a condescending voice, "That's very unlady like Helga."

"Oh yea and committing murder ISN'T unlady like. You are a fucking psycho. If you killed Arnold-"

Lila ordered "For the last time I didn't murder anyone. And Arnold isn't dead. Boys wake him up."

Lila snapped her fingers and without notice one of the men pulled out a container of a white substance from his pocket. He put it up to Arnold's nose and within minutes he was coughing up a storm. He was coughing but at least he was alive.

Arnold looked around confused and bewildered. Why was he chained up? Why was Helga chained up? What was going on with his head? It felt like he had grown a tumor.

"What's going on here? Why are Helga and I tied up." Arnold asked, frantically looking around. The two men made their exit. "Lila what did you do?"

Lila frowned and said, "I told you that no one was safe and you didn't listen. I'm only doing what I'm told. I'm sorry, I really did like you Arnold."

Helga snapped, "If you liked him so much why would you try to kill him, you crazy bitch!"

"I'm ever so sorry to you both." Lila ran out of the warehouse and left the two of them tied up.

Helga tried once more to free herself but it was no use. This was definitely the end for her and Arnold. No one was coming to save her. No one was going to stop this at the last minute. Is this how Rhonda felt when she plummeted to her death? Maybe Rhonda had been here, in this very same warehouse. Maybe Rhonda was better off dying the way she did if dying in this warehouse was the only option you had.

Helga said nonchalantly. "So this is the way we're going to go Arnoldo. Tied up to a stiff pole with chain stuck up our asses. It was nice knowing ya'."

Arnold tried to sound as positive as possible."Don't say that. We can still get out of here. Someone is coming for us, okay."

Helga saw right through his statement. "Always the optimist. This is real life Arnold. In real life there's no one to save you. You die your shitty death and people move on with their lives afterwards. That's what happened to Rhonda right!" Helga felt the tears start to fall down her cheeks. Typical her, the one time she gets emotional is when she's about to become casket ready. "No matter how much I tried to keep her memory alive and tried to figure out who killed her it all didn't amount to shit. We'll all be dead soon. Maybe I can ask her what happened to her in the afterlife once I kick the bucket."

Arnold still couldn't give up hope. "Don't give up yet. Sid can still come. Maybe he can send for us."

Helga coughed then said, "Sid is laying in a hospital bed fighting for his life. The entire police department is too busy fighting all of the crime that's rampant in the city. No one can help us."

"No," Arnold's voice started to break. "What about Gerald or Phoebe? They'll look for us."

Helga was always a realist. That was her downfall. She wished she could be like Arnold and imagine that this wasn't happening. "If they're lucky they're probably off screwing each other and don't even know we're gone. Face it. This is it. We're going to die."

"N,no."

Helga began to cry. "Yes, yes we are. Before we die I guess I should answer your question. I absolutely want to be with you Arnold and there has been no doubt in my mind of that ever since I first met you. I love you. I love your stupid foot head and your annoying way of always seeing the good in people. I have loved you since you shared your umbrella with me in preschool. I have loved you even when you haven't loved me. I watched you be with other girls and I'd wish they were me. To know you loved me too is really, well it's really my dying wish."

Helga laughed, even through the tears, "If we weren't about to die I'd probably screw you all over the apartment so we can have little football headed kids and we would plan our wedding and we'd grow older together. That seems like the ultimate life.

Helga continued to speak at this point trying to speak to pass the time, "Maybe Rhonda was happy to die, you know? She had reached the pinnacle of her career. She had fallen in love with someone who loved her back. She had lost her virginity, which is something I wished I had accomplished before I died. She was going to be a mother. Maybe she was ready to go and wanted to do it with a bang.

Helga was now sobbing with tears streaming down her face, "Fuck, Arnold we're really going to die. I love you so much it hurts. I'd rather die with you than die alone."

Arnold himself had already been crying, "I love you too Helga. I'm sorry I didn't believe you about Lila, about Rhonda, about everything. I'm sorry I'm such an idiot who didn't see how amazing the girl was in front of him. I'm sorry for being jealous of Sid, I should've known that he was better for you than I was. I'm sorry for being a terrible friend and roommate this whole time. God, I'm sorry for wasting so much time. We could've been making love and having dates in Paris and but I just took too long. I'm sorry for not loving you sooner. If they kill us now I'd want to die first just for being a pathetic idiot. Forgive me for everything Helga."

Helga's voice was now shaky, "I, I forgive you."

The couple had said all they needed to say and was prepared for what was to come. They thought of Rhonda in that moment. Whoever killed her had a hell of a reputation to uphold. If that person was going to kill Helga G. Pataki and Arnold Shortman it would tell a lot more than bullets to kill them both.

The couple close their eyes and prepared to face the consequences of their sudden, impending death.

 **Author's Note: That's all folks. This is my longest update yet! One or two more chapters to go then it's all over and everything will be revealed. Any theories about what's to happen next I'd love to hear! As always, thanks for reading!**


	27. The Dead End

**Chapter 27: Dead Ends**

Helga and Arnold had slept (horribly might they add) through the night. They were shocked to even wake up the next day. They thought for sure they were going to be dead by now. Helga hoped that they had forgot about them.

That was too good of a thought to have when she heard the footsteps. Her and Arnold looked at each other, hoping for the best. It was Lila and Big Gino who had came to see them.

"Well, you're THE Helga Pataki that won't keep her big mouth shut." Gino walked over to Helga and grabbed her face with both of his hands. She was terrified. "You're Helen of Troy my dear."

"Don't you touch her!" Arnold yelled, trying to free himself from his chains. Gino only smirked and gave Arnold a hard punch to the side of his face.

"ARNOLD!" Helga screamed.

"Shut up. Can't you see I'm talking to the pretty lady." Gina turned back to Helga and placed his hands on her face once again. "Now where were we Pretty Lady."

Lila chimed in. "No need to be ever so harsh Gino."

Gino was annoyed and took it out on Lila. He grabbed the frightened girl by her hair and slapped her twice. When he was finished with her he threw her to the cold ground.

Gino stomped on Lila's small body and yelled, "Did I tell you to talk? I told you you are decoration only. Neither of them would be here if you killed them when I told you. If you would've gotten rid of Rhonda like a good girl no one would be dragged into this mess."

Lila winced in pain as he twisted his foot into her stomach. "I'm, I'm sorry."

He kicked her in the side of the head. "I'm sorry what Lila?"

Lila said in a barely audible whisper, "I, I'm s,sorry baby."

Gino released his foot and the girl could breathe finally. "That's right baby. Good girl. Now get off the floor. Decorations don't stay on the dirty floor." Lila did as she was told and dusted herself off. She put the same plastic smile back on her face.

Helga and Arnold were both shocked. Lila was being abused right in front of them. Then it all fit. She was doing everything because she feared for her life. Through that perfect smile she had, Helga could see her pain. She was terrified and beaten like a caged bird with broken wings.

"I'm sorry about my girlfriend folks. She hasn't been trained well enough." Gino straightened his tie. For a man so dangerous, he sure cleaned up well. Despite his violence, he was extremely polite and well-spoken. Was that a requirement to becoming a crime overlord?

Arnold's face was red and the side of his face was already swelling. "What are you waiting for?"

Gino laughed. "Well I'm waiting for some remorse. I can't kill such a pretty girl without allowing her her last rites."

"Remorse? You're the biggest criminal in this city and you want me to beg for remorse. You have been killing innocent people for years and for what? For money?"

"Innocent? The people I ordered to be killed seek retribution for betraying me, like you soon will be. Now don't make me angry." Gino rolled up the sleeves up of his suit. "I really don't like doing my own dirty work Helga."

Helga could pee her pants. She was terrified but she couldn't back down. She didn't want to die without swinging the whole way.

"I can tell. You haven't been tagged for a single one of your crimes."

"That's because I have friends in high places. You really think that the police aren't afraid of me, that they don't fear me as much as you do. They're mere mortals and I am a god. I control everything in this city and there's no one to stop me. I'm untouchable as Jesus was when he walked on water."

"So what if you have officers looking out for you? You're still a murderer. You killed Rhonda!"

"On the contrary, I never murdered anyone. Rhonda kept trying to stop me from getting my blessings from Horowitz' account. I only make the calls between life and death but Rhonda was not my doing. Definitely was not my work. It was such a shame, such a sloppy job. "

If he didn't kill Rhonda, which Helga highly doubted, who did?

"How?"

"My beautiful girlfriend here has been infiltrating that company for years. As the company grew so did my wealth. Some people think my drug money is bad but blood money still has value. I simply invested then took what was mine. Rhonda had a problem with that unfortunately. Glad someone got her before I did."

Lila was visibly shivering. Helga could barely breath and Arnold's heart was raging.

Gino continued, "I do feel bad for Rhonda. They could've at least preserved her face. Don't worry Helga when you're dying I'll make sure to not harm your beautiful face so your boyfriend here has something to look at while he suffers."

~/~

Sid was extremely distraught. He was stuck in the hospital bed playing Texas Hold 'Em with Harold and his whole friend group could be dead.

He grunted at the thought. He could barely focus in the game with Harold, who seemed all too calm about this whole situation. He didn't freak out or scream or even cry at the fact that his friends could be killed. Hell, he didn't even flinch when Helga went missing. Something was up with him.

Harold handed Sid a candy bar from his pocket. "I brought you a Mr. Fudgey. Figured it would be better than the hospital food."

Of course he offered him fucking chocolate at a time like this. Harold still stress ate like he was the same 250 pound little boy. He had been doing it a lot lately. Despite, patrolling together every night and being partners on the force they didn't talk much about their personal lives. There was no time for that when bullets were fired at them left and right everyday. Still, he felt like a bad friend for never asking how Harold was or how he felt. Even after the funeral they didn't talk about it.

Sid decided to bring the emotional stuff in naturally as opposed to forcing it out of him. "Thanks. The doc says my ribs are healing up. I don't feel that stabby pain in my liver when I move anymore."

Harold grinned. "That's great. You'll be out of here in a week or so."

Sid thought about that night, the night that landed him in the hospital. Sid turned his back to leave and then the shots came. If Gino thought Sid was going to be mad enough to shoot at him over a little vague threat he was stupid. It wasn't shots from Gino's side though. It was Harold.

Sid remembered turning around just as Harold pulled the trigger. Before he could ask what the hell he was doing Sid could feel the bullets hit him. Everything went black after that. He had meant to ask him what happened. Maybe now was the chance.

"I hope. I didn't get to apologize. I have been so focused on being a great partner that I've been a shitty friend. I know we're men and we're not supposed to have emotions and shit but what is going on with you? You've been eating more. You haven't been joking with me like usual. It's like ever since Rhonda's death you've been a different person."

Harold averted his gaze from Sid's concerned eyes. "Can we not talk about Rhonda or her death please? I'm fine Sid."

Sid was insistent on getting answers. "Like hell you are. I'm not the most sensitive guy in the world but I notice when people are experiencing pain. Why don't you want to talk about it Harold? You loved her. I know Eugene was going to marry her but you two together were perfect. You guys were like soul mates. It's okay to be pissed off."

Sid couldn't help but feel guilty for all the times they hooked up behind Harold's back in high school. If he could take it back he would have. He enjoyed it at the time but now it just made her sick to remember that he laid in bed with Rhonda Wellington Lloyd.

Harold's body stiffened. He was extremely uncomfortable talking about this. He always avoided the subject and moved to something else. That wasn't good enough for Sid. He needed to know what was up.

"I DID love her. I'm sorry if I don't want to talk to a guy, who can't keep his dick in his pants long enough to have a serious relationship, about the love of my life."

Sid WAS quite the ladies man but lately he hadn't been. Harold seemed noticeable bitter towards Sid's sex life, which frankly had been nonexistent for awhile.

Sid's eyes narrowed. "Low blow dude, but you're deflecting. You need to talk to someone. If not me then who? Christ, Harold you fired shots last night at Gino when there was no clear threat. They were going to let us leave. If you didn't shoot at them I wouldn't be here right now, handcuffed to this stupid bed. You are seriously losing it!"

Harold said briefly, "I was afraid last night. I panicked."

Sid immediately detected the bullshit. "You're lying. I'm the one that panics. You never fucking panic. Cut the bullshit. Why'd you shoot at Gino's men? You could've at least waited until I was facing them to do it. You didn't have my back at all."

"I ALWAYS have your back. And I told you, I panicked. There's nothing else to say."

Harold was the worst liar Sid had ever seen. Of all the bullshitters and crooks he encountered Harold was possibly the worst liar. It almost seemed like Harold waited until he turned around on purpose. Now that Sid thought about it, if it was a real firefight and Harold fired first why the hell did he not have a scratch on him? Unless… Unless….

Sid came to a realization. He proclaimed, "You set me up, you bastard! Why else would you come out of a mob shoot out unharmed."

"Sid, I, I s-swear I-

"Shut up! Just shut up! You honestly thought I wouldn't figure it out." Harold was shaking. Sid paused for a second, "Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. You took Helga didn't you or you at least aided in her kidnapping. You didn't go look for her, you ass hole. You helped transfer her while I was lying in this stupid bed! You are the only one who even knew she was here."

"Listen-"

"No! You've been working with Gino this entire time haven't you? You've been searching for clues just so he could go out and kill people. How else would he know about Helga and Arnold? You have blood on your hands!"

"It wasn't me. It was Lila! Lila's been the one watching them. I just, I just…." Harold grew silent.

Sid was fuming. "You just what? You've been making sure to help Gino cover up his dirty work. You've been cleaning up crime scenes for him. You've been feeding him our next move. You've been helping that bastard get away with murder over and over again."

Harold once again tried to explain himself. "I was in over my head! I, I didn't mean to help him. I didn't mean to be involved with the mafia. Sid, you're, you're my main man. I would never betray you but I had to help Gino."

Sid retorted. "Oh you'd never betray me but you got me shot and beaten. Some main man you are!"

Harold was the most honest in what seemed like a while. "I made sure they didn't kill you Sid. Gino was growing tired of you. No matter how much I tried to make you stop searching about Rhonda you didn't stop. You should be grateful. He would've killed you if I hadn't begged for him to let you live."

Sid's sarcasm was present. "Oh I'm so grateful. You handcuffed me to keep me here, didn't you? You're supposed to keep me here while he kills them right? You're disgusting! What great actor you are! You even got the plane tickets for me to give to them and acted like you cared, like you wanted them safe but really you were a dirty snake."

"It's the only way I can keep you safe. You're still my best friend. And so what if Arnold and Helga die? In another month the Rhonda case will be dead and we can move on. I know you like Helga but you can find someone else. She just didn't know how to keep her mouth shut. She didn't know how to keep her nose out of things."

"He has Arnold too!" Sid balled his hands up into fists. "Why are you so obsessed with forgetting the Rhonda case? I know Gino keeps getting his drug money from Horowitz Inc with her gone but what did you get? If you loved her wouldn't you rather have her alive?"

"Sid, stop talking! You don't want to go down this road. Just lay there and wait. Gino will make the call soon and it'll be over. I'll be off free, I'll have my debt paid and I can leave town."

He couldn't believe him. He was willing to sacrifice two of their oldest friends for what? Unless he was trying to save his own ass for some reason.

"What debt? What does he have…. Oh my god, YOU killed her didn't you?! You killed your own ex- girlfriend. How could I have not figured it out before? That scene was so clean and so staged like a person who knew crime scenes. Every clue we got seemed to only be met with another body or a dead end. All this time you've been playing me. You let me get shot, you helped kidnap Helga, you've been working for Gino this whole time because he knows you killed her."

"No. No. No."

"YES! You killed her. A man like Gino only uses people he knows he has control over. You're guilty as hell. That's why you don't want to talk about her. You killed her!"

Harold was having a mental break down."I DIDN'T MEAN TO! It was an accident. She was being horrible to me. She was using me like always. I didn't mean to kill her, I promise. She was belittling me and my manhood. I couldn't take it anymore."

Flashback…..

The sun had set for the night. Harold was excited he had gotten a message from Rhonda asking him to meet her at a hotel. Maybe she would finally realize how much they belonged together. If they weren't meant to be, why would Harold continue to feed her drug problem after all these years? They were made for each other.

He knew she still wanted him. Why else would she have sent him all those flirty messages behind Eugene's back? Why else would she had slept with him all those months ago after he pulled her off the streets? When he found her that night, a year and a half prior she looked a wreck. She was walking the streets like a common whore, begging for pills and any kind she could get her hands on. He took her to his apartment for the night and they spent the night pleasuring each other until the sun came up. She was so beautiful. Ever since then Harold had came to make sure she had pills which he had stolen from the drugs confiscated back at the station. No one would miss them, he thought and it gave him excuse to spend time with Rhonda. The plan was he'd bring her drugs, come back to his apartment where they'd make passionate love, and then she'd go back to Eugene who she swore she was going to leave for Harold.

Lately though, she hadn't spent the night with him anymore. She would get her pills from the drop off location then leave. She wouldn't kiss him, wouldn't speak to him, and wouldn't even acknowledge his presence. It had been 4 months since they had last touched each other and Harold was curious to know why. She couldn't keep her hands off of him every other time. Harold assumed Eugene just couldn't compare to him in all aspects of their relationship. Maybe Eugene was watching her more and she couldn't slip away. Whatever the case may have been Eugene was excited to finally be alone with her again. She was his everything.

Harold had driven in an unmarked car. Him driving in the cop car just looked suspicious. Sid would suspect something. If Harold even attempted to explain the complicated relationship he had with Rhonda to Sid, he would never understand. Sid had a new woman every week and could never understand true love if it hit over the head.

It didn't matter what anyone else thought, Harold said to himself. She'd be all his soon. He smiled and drove passed the William Gates Hotel. This was where they used to spend some nights together. It was on the lower end of town and sleazy to say the least but no one would expect a famous socialite to be there. She always gave a fake name and wore a disguise. He himself usually wore a black hoodie with the hood pulled over his face and a blue baseball cap. No one could possibly know he was a cop dressed as a civilian.

He parked his car a couple blocks away and walked up the hotel with the pills in his backpack. She'd be happy this time. He had three freezer bags full of Xanax for her. That would last her awhile. She'd be so happy with him when he showed her this.

Harold walked into the hotel and up to the elevator. Room 1214. It was a different room every time but she'd let him know which room she got 20 minutes before he'd arrive. He knocked on the door and there she was in all of her breath-taking beauty.

She was dressed in a red nightgown that didn't leave anything to the imagination. It was sheer and he could see all of her creamy skin underneath. It stopped just below her killer butt and cupped her breasts perfectly. Although it was closed to cover her breasts, it opened like a robe over her bare stomach. All of that skin was just begging for Harold to touch.

"Hurry up and get in here geez! I thought you were coming earlier! It's almost nine o'clock." Rhonda flipped her long black, straight locks and pulled Harold inside. Harold took a seat on the bed and placed his backpack down. Rhonda disappeared into the bathroom and reappeared with a fluffy, white robe to cover herself up.

She was always such a tease. Harold looked around the room and saw the rose petals scattered throughout the room and the candles that were lit. She had pulled out all of the stops for him as he eyed the expensive wine sitting on the night stand.

He wanted her so bad. She was absolutely stunning. It was hard for any man to resist her beauty. "Why'd you cover up? I liked what I saw Rhonda."

Rhonda looked at Harold like he was an alien, like he was disgusting, like he was beneath her. He didn't understand. If she wasn't being sexy for him then who? Why did she suddenly not want him flirting with her?

"I have someone else coming so can we make this-"

Before Rhonda could finish her snarky statement she ran to the bathroom in a rush. Harold followed behind her to make sure she was okay. She kneeled on the floor and then proceeded to throw up into the porcelain bowl. Harold held her hair back as she emptied the contents of her stomach into the toilet. When she finished she got up and washed her mouth out with warm water.

Harold flushed the toilet for her and then asked, "What's wrong? Are you sick?"

Rhonda wiped her mouth and began reapplying her red lipstick. "I'm fine. Just been having an upset stomach lately."

"For how long?"

"Three weeks but it's not a big deal. It's probably the withdrawal symptoms from the Xanax." Rhonda made sure she looked perfect in the mirror before leaving the bathroom. She yelled, "Which is why I NEED my pills Harold. Where are they?"

He could hear her searching threw his bag from the bathroom. He stormed out and snatch the bag from her.

Rhonda threw her hands up in annoyance then put her hands on her hips. "What the hell Harold? Give me the drugs!"

"Not yet, Rhonda. I wanted to talk for a bit like we did before. You owe me that at least."

"I don't want to talk Harold. I just want my Xanax. I need you out of here by 10."

Rhonda plopped down on the bed next to Harold. He placed a hand on her upper thigh and said, "Well we don't have to talk tonight baby. There's time for that later."

Rhonda smacked his hand away, "Don't touch me you pig! I told you I have someone coming at 10 so hurry up and give me the pills so you can leave."

What was her problem? Why was he rejecting him like he was second-hand trash?

Harold tried to make sense of things. "Well you aren't getting it right now. Not until you tell me who you have coming that's so much more important than me. You dressed all sexy for another man? I thought you and Eugene didn't fool around. We haven't had sex in months Rhonda. I know you want me."

Rhonda laughed right in Harold's face. It made him feel weak. "We aren't doing that anymore Harold. We're done. Did you honestly think I was going to sleep with you tonight? You're pathetic."

Harold was beginning get angry. How dare she? His veins were popping out of his neck. "You told me you'd leave Eugene for me. That you wanted to be with me and now you're saying you're meeting another guy here tonight. This was OUR spot and you're going to screw someone else."

Rhonda could tell he was getting upset. She took the moment to walk into the other part of the hotel room and stood near the large glass window. She looked out at the city lights longingly.

"Harold, I'm in love okay. He is a great man, an honest man, and he makes me want to be better. He gives me love and affection and compliments me beyond my appearance. I want to be with him. I have a plan to get away from Eugene and he's going to help me. Then we could finally leave Hillwood and be together." Rhonda spoke softly, as she gazed out of the window.

Harold got up from the bed and walked over to her, placing his hands on her shoulders. "You're leaving Eugene for someone else and not ME. How could you love someone else? For how long have you been seeing him?"

"For four months now. I never intended to be with you Harold if we're being honest here. If you actually believed that I wanted you you're delusional."

"We had been seeing each other for almost two years. You slept with me. You kissed me. You told me you wanted to have children with me. None of that meant anything to you?"

She said nonchalantly, "I lied. All of it was a lie. I'm sorry sweetheart but the only thing I wanted from you were my Xanax."

She was the coldest woman he had ever met. His was heartbroken and angry. He couldn't believe the past year and a half was lie. How could she manipulate him like that?

Harold gritted his teeth. "You bitch! You lying, manipulative bitch. You played with my heart. You used me to feed your addiction."

She spoke in a condescending tone. "Bravo Harold, you finally have some brain cells I see. I was waiting for you to figure it out. How could I ever love a man like you! You are broke and stupid and have nothing to offer me at all. You are useless and sad excuse for a man."

Harold could feel his eyes misting up. Rhonda looked at him up and down and sighed. "Aw is the baby Harold going to cryyy. Grow up and be a man Harold! If I didn't want you in high school why would I want you now? There we talked! Now give me my shit you idiot!"

Harold was quick to grasp her shoulders tight so she looked at him right in his eyes. "You are a disgusting person Rhonda. You lie to everyone to come into contact with."

Rhonda tried to shake his tight grip from her shoulders, "Let me go Harold! You're hurting me."

"No. I'm going to expose you for what you really are. You are a manipulative, heartless bitch!"

Rhonda smirked, "Well at least I'm pretty."

Harold breathed heavy and asked, "What else have you been lying to me about? Did you ever love me?"

Rhonda chuckled and leaned her red stained lips real close to his ears. "I was fucking Sid the entire time we were together in high school and I enjoyed every moment of it. How do you feel knowing your best friend was better at making me orgasm than you ever were?" She mockingly grabbed at his crotch as she smirked at him.

Harold gripped her shoulders tighter, so tight it could've left a bruise. "You fucked Sid! You fucked my best friend. You cheated on me with HIM."

Rhonda was noticeably uncomfortable but that didn't stop her from snapping back. "Aw baby don't feel too bad. You can ask him how good I was."

Eugene shook Rhonda hard by the shoulders. Her head bounced back and forth.

"Let go of me Harold!"

Harold stopped for a minute and said, "Screw you. You are a terrible person!"

"Yes, yes I'm terrible and rich and successful and I still have a man that loves me. If you give me my pills we could both move on with our lives. You can go on being pitiful and I can go on being beautiful."

Harold's breathing was heavy. There was blood rushing through his veins. His vision was blurry. His face was turning red as he went and grabbed his backpack from the other room.

Rhonda looked dumbfounded as he headed towards the door. She sipped her wine and then ran over to cut him off.

"Give me the drugs or I will tell everyone you have been stealing drugs from work because you're a druggie."

She had some nerve of accusing anyone else of being a drug addict. She WAS the one needed him! She WAS the one who needed her Xanax to live with herself at night.

He dared her to tell that lie. "You are the one who's the druggie. No one will believe you."

"Ha, you want to bet? I am Rhonda Wellington Lloyd. I'm a perfect socialite in every way. Everyone loves me. If I say that Officer Harold Berman has been stealing drugs and tried to rape me in one of his drugged manias EVERYONE will believe me."

"YOU BITCH!" Harold grabbed her by the wrist and tried to push her the ground. Rhonda grabbed for his backpack all the while. Harold dragged her across the floor, causing her to drop her wine glass. Even as Harold dragged her by her robe she didn't let go off his bag, which was falling off his shoulder.

"Give it to me!" She screamed as they both struggled. Finally Harold pulled her so hard he ripped her robe from her body. She was clad in her nightgown still trying to get Harold's bag.

They made their way close to the window again and it was a stand off. Harold's shirt had gotten messed up from the fight and Rhonda's hair was completely disheveled. Harold still had the backpack in his hand. He put his back against the cold glass as Rhonda's large eyes locked in on the bag from a few feet away.

"You want your drugs so bad huh!" Harold dangled the bag to the side. "Come get it!"

Rhonda came charging at Harold. Before she was able to tackle him Harold stepped to the side. He really thought the window would stop her or she would run so hard it would knock her out. She was ferocious, kicking him and spitting at him. She would not let go off him for a minute.

Harold threw the bag at her hard, still holding on to one of the straps. That was enough to send her falling back through the glass window. It happened almost in slow motion. Harold threw the bag at her hard, she fell back, the glass broke, and he heard her scream all the way down.

What had he done? He had underestimated how hard he pushed her. It was too late! She was already dead on the ground below by the time he could grasp what happened.

"Shit! Shit! Shit!" There he was alone with broken glass at his feet and a dead body on his hands. The police would come soon. He WAS the police! His career wouldn't survive if anyone knew. He had to clean this up. He had to erase the evidence, had to get the fuck out of there.

A knock came at the door. Rhonda hadn't even locked the door because the next thing he knew a man was in the room while he was trying to stage the scene and wipe his prints clean.

"I heard a disturbance. I'm Gi-NO." The mob boss saw the apparent mess and the open hole from the window. "What did you do?"

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" Harold said frantically as he cleaned up more prints.

"Well, well I recognized you. You're Sidney's partner, Harold right. You two have been giving me a lot of trouble. What has the good cop done now?" Gino walked towards Harold and looked at some of the paperwork on the table. "Oh shit! You killed that Rhonda bitch. My girlfriend has been trying to get rid of her for such a long time. She's been a pain in my business. Good job. I was coming here to off her myself tonight."

"Shit! Shit! Shit!" Harold was shaking and out of it. He was going to jail. Gino was a witness. He needed to get rid of him too now. "I'll do anything you want. Don't say anything please. Help me cover it up."

Gino rubbed his hands. He was obviously scheming. "You realize you're making a deal with the mafia, Boy? If I keep my mouth shut, you give me police immunity. I run this city now Harold. You understand me."

Harold shook his head. Gino was going to take advantage of him for sure but at least he could avoid going to jail and being labelled as a murderer. He wasn't a murder. She just fell, he kept repeating to himself in his head.

"Great, get your shit and let's get out of here. We have 20 minutes before a police response. I shack up here from time to time so I'm good with timing. My boys will do the rest before the cops get here. Remember, you owe me debt now Harold."

Harold grabbed his backpack and the white robe and headed out with Gino. His head was running wild. No one had seen him. There was no DNA in the room. If there still was Gino's men would handle it. It just looked like she fell out of the window. Yea, she fell. He needed to believe she just fell.

As he drove off, trusting Gino would keep his end of the bargain his police scanner went off. It was Sid. He could hear his voice through the speaker: "Hey man we're needed in the lower side. Some girl fell from a window and it's gathering attention. We need to get out there now. Meet you there in 15."

Harold could barely focus. He was shaking with his hands on the wheels. He needed to compose himself. He probably looked horrible. His shirt was ripped, he had scratches on his arms, and his eyes were red. He had to clean himself up before he went anywhere or saw anyone. He was still in shock and could barely take a breath.

She fell. She fell, he kept saying to himself. You are not responsible.

His phone went off. It was a text from Gino.

 **Gino: It's done. You're clear. Remember, you're my inside man now.**

"Fuck!" He stopped the car and eyed the backpack and robe in his back seat. He couldn't face her lifeless body right now and he definitely couldn't face Sid. He picked up his walkie-talkie and said: "10-4 Sid. I'm not going to be able to make it tonight. I'm out of town right now. I'll be there in the morning. Sounds terrible."

Sid responded: "10-4. It's a mess out there man. They say she's a beautiful girl who just fell out of the sky according to onlookers. See you tomorrow man."

Harold exhaled deeply and drove as fast as he could to the outskirts of town. He burned the pills and the robe right under the Hillside Bay Bridge. As the smoke went up, the memories of his past affair with Rhonda flooded into his mind. He curled into a ball and let out a blood-curdling scream. He killed her. He killed her. He killed her. It was all his fault and now he had a blood debt with the most dangerous criminal in town.

He didn't want to go to jail though so he had to play it off. He had to be Gino's inside man.

It wasn't a mistake. She deserved to die. Rhonda was the worst kind of person and he had saved everyone from more pain. He hoped when she hit the ground and breathed her last breath she thought of him. He hoped she regretted crossing him now.

She deserved it. She deserved it for not loving him back. She deserved it for lying to him and using him. She deserved it for being dirty, for sleeping with Sid, and for being the devil in a skin-tight, designer dress.

"Good riddance Ms. Lloyd." As he watched the flames erupt, the last tear fell from his eyes and he knew everything was going to work out. He had did a great service to the world by ending Rhonda's reign of terror.

She was still beautiful until the very end. She was like Lucifer. She had fallen from heaven as a beautiful angel and come to man to promote evil. As she fell that night, Harold hoped she had repented. He had hoped he thought of him as she drew her very last breath.

…...End of Flashback

Harold paced back and forth like a caged tiger. Things he felt he should have done, coupled with his perceived failures dominated his mind. He thought about his actions and words, finding them inadequate. Festering guilt rendered his mind ineffective, his short term memory shot. There it goes again, my inner dialogue, but it's not my friend. It whispers to me, "Everything has gone wrong, it's terrible, no way back, disaster, ruin...". He needed to run away. Sid knew and now there was no way out of this.

"You're a coward Harold. You kill her,covered it, and ran. How can still wear your badge with blood on your hands?"

"I told you it was an accident. And I'm not the coward! When were you going to tell me you slept with her? Never?"

"Harold, I'm sorry. She manipulated me too and I fell for it. I was wrong for that but it was ten years ago. I assumed you moved on. I didn't know you served as her personal drug dealer in exchange for oral sex!"

"It WASN'T like that! You shut up. It's not fair Sid." Harold had gotten so upset that he punched a hole next to the bed. He was losing it indefinitely. "You get everything. You get the gorgeous women, the nice apartment, and all of the praise at work. I'm still that pathetic fat kid."

"Harold-"

"No shut up! I should've known you'd figure it out. Now I have to kill you Sid." Harold drew his gun quickly. "No one can ever know what I did. I love you man."

"Be a man for once in your life. Shoot me but at least uncuff me. You owe me that much, partner." Harold kept the gun pointed at his head and uncuffed him from the bed. Sid looked into the barrel of the gun and nearly froze. In all of his years of service he had never been at the other side of a gun due to someone he cared about. The fact that it was Harold wielding the gun and ultimately wielding his life in his hands made Sid get a knot in his stomach. He had never been so uncertain and so afraid in his life.

He had to pretend he was strong. No one could ever see him weak, not even Harold. Sid laughed to himself, "You honestly thought I came here without my piece? You aren't as good of a partner as I thought."

Sid pulled his gun while Harold pointed his gun right at Sid's head. Sid's heart was pounding. He had never been so afraid of a gun in his life. He knew for a fact Harold was a better shot than him. He also knew his arm had begun to bleed again from the strain of moving his arm to hold the gun. Things weren't looking good for him but he had to protect and serve until the very end.

"This is the end my friend." Harold clicked the safety off his gun. Sid was ready for whatever was going to happen next. His partner of 6 years was about to kill him in a hospital room. This may have started with Rhonda but it was going to end with one of them dead.

 **Author's Note: ONE MORE CHAPTER LEFT! How do you guys feel about the killer being revealed? Did it shock you? Considering everyone is setup to die next chapter: Who do you think will live to tell the tale?**


	28. Rest

**Chapter 28: Rest**

His vision was blurry and all he could see was the sight of red. He was definitely having an anxiety attack. He felt dirty and unclean and he needed to clean up now.

He was on his knees scrubbing the floor when the nurse came in.

Dirty. Dirty. Dirty, Sid thought. Everything was filthy. He had to get rid of the germs.

She screamed at the sight. Sid, the Kid had blood splattered on his face as he scrubbed the floor with his bed sheets.

Right next the bed was a man who was bleeding profusely.

"Oh my God, I thought I heard gunshots. Oh my god. Oh my god."

"C,call the Sergeant." Sid continued scrubbing, almost as too scrub the memory out of his head. He saw himself in the reflection of the shiny floor. He looked down and saw him with a stain of blood on his face.

How did it ever come to this?

~/~

This was the last day for Arnold Shortman and Helga Pataki. This was it. They were completely at the mercy of a power hungry maniac.

"Come here Lila!" Gino barked his orders at the timid girl. She came over instantly. He pulled a knife from his back pocket and put it in her hands.

"You know how much I don't like doing the dirty work. Kill her, won't you Dollface? Make it nice and slow so her boyfriend can watch."

Lila looked at the knife in her hands. She was shaking as she held the knife up in front of her face.

"I've never killed anyone before."

"Go on. Don't be shy. Slit her throat for me."

Lila walked up slowly to Helga who was sweating and also shaking. She could tell Lila didn't want to do it. It wasn't about what anyone wanted anymore.

The sirens sounded from outside as she felt the knife press up against her knife.

From outside a loud voice sounded from a megaphone. "This is Sergeant Bergman. Come out with your hands up Gino. No one will get hurt. I know you have hostages."

"Shit. Lila hurry up and kill her then kill the boy. We'll go out of the back and escape. No one will be able to pin us to their deaths. Come on babe."

Helga inhaled slightly. The cold metal against her neck made her shiver. Pressure was asserted and she could feel beads of blood form. It was all over then. Little Miss Perfect was finally getting her out of the picture. She shut her eyes and prepared for the worse.

Shots sounded.

~/~

Sergeant Bergman felt a sense of anxiety. When he got to hospital Sid looked like he was losing it. The scene was straight out a gruesome crime scene. Splashes of blood were splattered on Sid's face and he was scrubbing the floor obsessively, to the point where he didn't even notice him walk in.

When the nurse called him, she was obviously shaken up and he couldn't see why until now. Harold Berman was lying on the floor bleeding and unconscious. His blood founded a puddle on the floor.

"Sid?" The Sergeant hoped it would be enough to bring Sid back to reality. "What the hell happened?"

He saw the gun sitting the side of Harold's body and he knew. Something had happened that he possibly couldn't understand. They were the best partners at the station. How did they get to an all out shootout in a hospital room?

"I,I didn't kill him." Sid muttered as he continued washing the floor.

He hoped to god Harold wasn't dead. This was a mess even he couldn't clean up.

He heard Sid utter something else. "Have to stop Gino. Before it's too late."

Jesus, Gino was at it again.

~/~

It was quiet. Far too quiet. Is this what death sounds like? Absolute silence.

Footsteps! Helga heard footsteps! She wasn't dead. She didn't kick the dust. She could breathe! She opened her eyes. Gino was on the ground, staring up at the ceiling, his eyes vacant and lifeless.

"Lila!" Arnold yelled out. "What did you do?!"

That's when Helga saw her. Lila was grasping the handle of the knife, which was covered in blood. She stabbed Gino and from what it looked like she stabbed him several times.

"I'm free. I'm finally free. I'm ever so happy." Lila had that same perfect smirk on her face, which now was far too creepy to ever be able to forget. "I'm ever so sorry Gino but I was just ever so tired of your abuse."

The footsteps drew closer. Helga was shaking and scared. Who knew what Lila was going to do next if the cops didn't get here?

"Hillwood PD! Drop the knife!" 15 police officers swarmed into the warehouse with their guns aimed at Lila. The Sergeant walked in with his own gun pointed.

"Drop the knife miss." The Sergeant was in no position to let up. "We've got two hostages and a body. Secure the hostages!"

Three cops sprung to action and walked over to the immobile couple.

As the cops worked on using a bolt cutter to unchain them, the Sergeant was giving Lila an ultimatum. "One last time: Drop the knife Ms. Sawyer or we will be forced to incapacitate you."

Helga heard the knife drop to the ground just as she was freed from her restraints.

"Cuff her!" The Sergeant wasted no time making the next order. He was quick to pin her on the ground and handcuff. "Lila Sawyer you are under arrest for co-conspiring in mafia activity, money laundering, forging documents, bribery, acting as an accomplice in the murder of Patricia Coleman and the murder of Gino Vincent."

The Sergeant continued to give her her right. "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say or do can be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to any attorney. If you cannot afford one one will be appointed to you. Do you understand Ms. Sawyer?"

Lila smiled the whole way through, "I ever so understand."

Helga was shaking as they took Lila outside and put her into the back of a car. By the the time Arnold was free the coroner had come to remove Gino's body.

As soon as he was free she ran straight to him and embraced him. She began to bawl into his arms.

She said between her sniffles, "I was so scared Arnold."

Arnold replied, "I know. I was too."

The Sergeant came back in to check on them. "Sorry to interrupt but do you need a medic? I see your face is a little beat up kid. And you have a mark on your neck Helga. We should get you both to the hospital just to make sure everything's okay."

"Thank you. Thank you so much. We thought we were going to be dead for sure."

"Don't thank me. Thank Sidney. He made the call. Now we'll need you both to give your testimony as to what happened today. I want you both to understand that you may be asked to testify against Ms. Sawyer."

Arnold was concerned still. "Is she going to be okay? I mean Gino abused her. We both saw that."

The Sergeant explained, "Most likely the DA will plead self-defense and that she wasn't in her right mind state. However, she'll be going away for a long time for what she did to Horowitz' company and what she did to Rhonda. Don't worry about her. We'll get you both to a hospital, okay."

Helga let out a sigh of relief. With Gino dead Rhonda could probably rest in peace. It was all over. After months of living on age, Hillwood could finally rest too.

Helga smiled to herself. She needed to remember to give Sid the biggest hug imaginable. Maybe once things settled down at home her and Arnold could take him up on that offer with those plane tickets. Something told Helga, that her and Arnold needed a little time away from Hillwood for awhile.

 **Author Note: All that is left is the epilogue. What would you guys like to see?**

 **By the way, I'm considering writing a spin-off or a second Hey Arnold mystery story. Which would you guys rather read, another mystery story in Hillwood or a Sid spin-off story?**

 **Farewell until next time.**


	29. Epilogue

**Chapter 29: Epilogue**

All was normal in the city of Hillwood as the citizens could walk the street safely and not have to think twice about looking over their shoulders.

It had been two months since the sentencing on the Rhonda Lloyd case had occurred. Harold Berman got life in prison without parole. Lila Sawyer also plead insanity to the murder of Gino Vincent but would serve 8 years for her other charges. The jury felt sorry for the girl as she cried and explained her trials going through Gino's abuse. They described her as "beautiful but having a menacing way about her". No one was ever going to be manipulated by Lila Sawyer again.

Since all of the hype died down involving Rhonda's death, eyes turned to Eugene to see what his next move was. Today was the day he would resurface after being gone for two months. According to Gerald Johanssen, this story would shake everyone's perception of the rich business man.

~/~

Arnold and Helga laid in bed cuddling. Since the day Gino was killed their bond had strengthened immensely. Helga couldn't go anywhere without thinking and Arnold and Arnold just couldn't stand not waking up to Arnold's football head.

Helga laid in Arnold's broad chest as he stroked her hair and all was tranquil. For once, everything felt right. There were no murders, no death threats, and no more funerals to attend. Despite the peace Helga and Arnold had not talked about that day since they had to testify a month ago. There was looming sense of urgency in the air when they were together. They needed to talk about it but how were they supposed to talk about a situation so terrible that it was surreal?

"Hey Arnold?" Helga spoke softly as she nuzzled closer into the crook of Arnold's neck.

"Yea?"

"I think I want a new job."

When death had suddenly hit her in the face all those months ago, Helga had decided to experience life for what it was. Life was meant to be real and meant to be meaningful. If she learned nothing from knowing Rhonda Wellington Lloyd, it was that life demanded to be felt and if you spent too much time focused on things that didn't matter your time would run out before you knew it.

"This is a surprise. I thought you liked being a technical writer. Who's going to tell me all of the warning labels on my meds now."

"You can read yourself! Doi!" Helga joked then returned to her serious tone. "Ever since the case with Rhonda I've been reminded of how much my job isn't fulfilling me. I want to be happy and make my life count for something."

Helga stopped for a moment then said, "I want to be an investigative journalist."

"You mean like Nancy Drew, except with lots of paperwork?"

"I just want to write about things that matter to me that's all. I mean I'm pretty damn nosey anyway. Why not put my skills to good use?"

Taking a page from Sid's book, she could expose professional bullshitters and crooks in her career. That to her meant she was helping people and making a small difference in the city.

"You are pretty nosey Helga and you're good at the investigating part. That much was proven from your die-hard obsession with discovering the truth about Rhonda."

"I WASN'T obsessed. I was just passionate."

"Well, whatever you want to call it I'd be proud to have my girlfriend working hard at something she loves." Arnold gave her a peck on the forehead.

"G-girlfriend?" They just hadn't used those terms yet. Sure they did couple things. They slept in the same bed together. They went out on dates. They were affectionate towards each other but to label things seemed too soon.

"I didn't know we were...well a thing yet. I figured you'd want to recover from Lila. You know the whole sleeping with the enemy thing could be hard to get over."

"I thought it was clear when we almost died together in that warehouse that we had been threw something that made our bond undeniable. I don't know about you but I've come to realize there's no time better than the present to be with the one you love. Rhonda knew that better than all of us. Life's too short to keep dancing around our feelings. I love you Helga G Pataki and there's no other woman I would rather call my girlfriend than you. I'd be honored, if you'll have me."

"Oh Arnold, my beloved! Of course I'll be in a relationship with you." Helga kissed Arnold passionately. His hands tangled in her hair and he ground against her thigh.

Helga groaned and kissed down Arnold's neck. She whispered, "So Boyfriend, what are we going to do now?"

Arnold smirked and flipped them both over so that he was now on top of Helga. Her legs wrapped around his waist, forcing him to kiss her again.

Helga pulled away and said, "You have to go to work. We can finish this later."

"I'm sure they can wait on their alcohol tonight." Arnold ground into Helga's leg again.

She planted a stern punch his chest and glared, "Get to work Bucko. We need rent money."

Arnold flinched, "Fine. Fine."

Arnold dragged his feet and started getting ready. Helga remained in the bed, surfing through the web on her phone. Arnold was busy brushing his hair when a notification came through on both of their phones.

Helga saw it was text from Gerald.

 **Geraldo:Read today's paper. It's out now :)! Check out the tv. Channel 9.**

Helga jumped to turn on the tv. She was shocked to see Eugene Horowitz on the screen dressed in a bright purple dress shirt, black pants, and with his short hair curled into small spiral curls.

Arnold commented on his appearance. "Well this is a change."

"Shhhhhh" Helga coaxed as Eugene started to speak.

" _Hello citizens of Hillwood. As you all know, I am Eugene Horowitz. I know my abscence in the past few months has been alarming to some and has caused some curiosity regarding my well-being. Some of you may think that I took two months off to mourn my fiancee' Rhonda, but if I was to continue to tell that lie it would be extremely negligent and frankly disgusting of me to do so._

 _The truth is that I have been living a lie for far too long. I have been using Rhonda's untimely death to continue to be dishonest with you all. The truth is that I, Eugene Horowitz, am a gay man and have been running away from that fact for awhile._

 _My relationship with Rhonda was a facade and simply, a way for me to maintain an image that I believed would be pleasing to you all. I am sorry for manipulating you all into believing my lies and I'm sorry for using Rhonda in such a manner. May she rest in peace knowing that I am truly remorseful for how I treated her. I retract all statements involving Rhonda and a drug problem. I was trying to protect myself and ended up defaming the character of a dear friend._

 _Despite me not being attracted to Rhonda she was still an important person in my life. She taught me that life is meant to be lived and not created or fabricated. From now on I will be living authentically as a man who is attracted to other men."_

"Wow. Way to go Eugene!" Arnold gave encouragement as Eugene continued his speech.

" _I also know people have been wondering about the state of my company. Unfortunately, I have been negligent in that aspect of my life as well. I was not paying attention and was not watching the people around me like I should have. As a result, so many of you citizens have been cheated out of your money and frankly cheated out of your energy by having hope and faith in me._

 _I will be remedying that situation by giving the money back to the people that deserve it, the citizens of Hillwood. I will be putting my personal salary into the restoration of this city, which includes repairing lower income neighborhoods, creating more safety measure so citizens feel protected, and giving back to schools like P.S. 118. I want to make this city great again._

 _In addition to bettering Hillwood's infrastructure I would like to donate money to the Rhonda Wellington Lloyd scholarship which was proposed to me by Frankie George. I wholeheartedly support his initiative to give back to students of Hillwood so they can have a secure future._

 _I thank you all for your time. I hope you all forgive me and support me as I begin to live in my truth and repent for the mistakes I've made. Thank you. Oh, yea and also today's paper contains an exclusive interview with Gerald Johanssen and I discussing some questions you may have regarding my sexuality and personal affairs. Please pick that up today! Again, thank you all."_

Helga turned off the tv and smiled. "Wow. Eugene finally grew some balls."

"I'm proud of him and I'm proud of you." Arnold gave Helga a quick kiss on the cheek. "Bye. I'll be back after I get off."

With Arnold gone Helga could entertain herself by giving Phoebe a quick call. She hadn't been speaking to her like usual so there was a lot to catch up on. She dialed the number quickly.

"Hello?" Phoebe's soft voice came through the reciever. It was pleasant for Helga to finally get a chance to properly talk to her friend after all the chaos.

"Pheebs! What's going on?"

"Helga, it's nice to hear from you. I've been doing better. I'm happy you called. I got tired of Gerald talking my ear off."

"Gerald's there? So you and Gerald?"

"Yea, he's been really great. He's supported me through everything, even therapy. I've been getting a lot better Helga, I promise. I can actually leave the house now and work without having anxiety attacks. Gerald's doing great too. He thinks the Eugene story can push him over the edge. Word on the street is that Eugene wants Gerald to write his biography. This could be a great opportunity for him."

"That's great Pheebs. I'm happy. Maybe you and Gerald can do a double date? Figured it's time to do couple things now."

Phoebe squealed, "FINALLY! You and Arnold has been a long time coming!"

"Yea maybe we can go out on Friday. I have lots of time since I'm looking for a new job. How does investigative journalist sound?"

"Sounds wonderful Helga. I'm excited for your new career endeavors."

A knock came at the door.

"Listen, Phoebe I got to go. We can talk later and let me know if you and Gerald can go out Friday. Bye."

"Bye."

Helga jumped up to answer the door. She hoped it wasn't the stupid maintenance man again.

She opened the door and was surprised to see Sid, who she hadn't seen in at least a month. Since the case, Sid spent two weeks in the hospital and he had been asked to take leave from his job until further notice. Helga assumed shooting Harold had taken a toll on him, even if he didn't kill him.

He looked a little rough. His hair was all over the place, he was beginning to grow a beard, and his hands looked dry like they were beginning to crack. What was going on? This wasn't the Sid she knew.

"Come in Sid." She gestured for him to sit down on the couch. He followed suit and took a seat next to Helga. "What's going on?"

"I just wanted to check on you. You look good Helga, really good."

"Thanks and you look terrible. What's going on with your hands Sid? They're all cracked and starting to bleed."

"Oh, yea my OCD has been coming back. The hand washing, the checking, and the 2 hour showers. I can't seem to do much else."

"Sid…"

"Helga, I'll be fine. I can get it under control. I don't have choice really. Sergeant won't let me back until I get a clean psych eval. I just want to go back to work."

"You shouldn't go back if you aren't ready. I know you miss Harold since he's in jail and I know you feel guilty for shooting him but you have to take your time to heal."

"I, I am healing. Actually that's why I'm here."

Helga was nervous. She had a feeling the next thing he was going to say wasn't something she wanted to hear.

"I'm leaving Helga."

"Leaving? For good?"

"No, just for a little while. Those plane tickets I had for you and Arnold have to go to use somehow."

"I see. When are you leaving? I want to see you off."

"Helga, you don't understand. I want to leave with you. Come with me. Please, I just feel so much better when you're with me."

"Sid, I don't know. I can't just run off with you."

"Why? Is it Arnold again? He can be without his roommate for one month."

"Sid, we aren't just roommates. We're together now. It happened so fast and you disappeared. I didn't get a chance to tell you."

"Geez, I should have never given up on us. Now, it's too late." Sid smacked him on the forehead. "God, I'm a fucking idiot. I just embarrassed myself."

"Don't feel bad. You didn't know and you aren't an idiot. You're still important to me, Sid. Go on the trip without me, get yourself together and come back to Hillwood ready to catch some bullshitters and crooks again. We need you out on these streets."

"Hmm I have been missing the feeling of calling bullshitters out on their bullshit."

"Exactly! The sooner you get better the sooner you can do what you love and things can be normal."

"Normal? Being a cop will never be normal without Harold. He betrayed me. He tried to kill me. I still can't believe I was sleeping with the enemy this whole time. I should've known. I should've been able to see through his bullshit."

"It's no one's fault. Think on the bright Sid, you saved lives. You saved the entire city from Gino. You should be proud."

"Yea, well I couldn't save you though. I can see the scar through the makeup Helga." Helga rubbed her neck right over where Lila was about to slit her throat. "I'm not stupid. I know he hurt you."

"I'm doing better everyday which is what you need to do. Hurry up and pack so you can get away. That's what you need. There's too much pain here for you right now."

"Ugh not sure if I need ten shots of whiskey, two weeks of sleep, or sex."

"Maybe you need all three."

"Ha, what do you know about needing sex? Ms. Virgin. Unless…"

Helga blushed scarlet red. "Siiiiiid, it's time for you to go now. Byeeeee."

Helga pushed Sid towards the door and opened it.

He winked at her and said, "Arnold's finally the lucky one huh."

"Shut it Sid."

"I'm sure we'll talk later. Bye Helga. Until next time."

"Bye." Helga shut the door behind her, hoping this wasn't the last time she saw Sid again.

~/~

The sun had set on Hillwood. Another day was done and night was about to begin. Everyone knew that at night Hillwood was full of secrets, but to some it was when they felt most alive.

Frankie George crept into the graveyard like he did every Sunday at 9:22PM. He visited the grave of his beloved and would leave roses because he knew how much she would've hated her tombstone not being remotely fashionable.

He dropped the roses on her gravesight and looked up at the headstone. It read:

 _Rhonda Lloyd Wellington_

 _December 12 , 1990- September 4, 2015_

" _Fashions fade, style is eternal."_

Though she wasn't always the most beautiful person in actions, Frankie would remember her inner beauty that was rare. She was rare.

Rhonda certainly had her own style and it would be remembered throughout time. There would never be another woman like Rhonda to ever live.

"Good night Rhonda. Stay beautiful in heaven."

 **Author's Note: Well it's been a long and bumpy ride but the story has come to an end. Thank you all for reading :)!**

 **For those of you who are interested I am working on a Sid spin-off. Considering I turned some of you into Sid lovers I think I can do him justice. There's a general lack of Sid stories here so I'm going to give it some life. It will feature Sid taking names, drinking whiskey, having flings and solving crimes.**

 **If anyone is interested I can post a sneak peek :)!**


	30. Excerpt from Save Me (NEW STORY)

**Author's Note: Hey Guys, just giving you a short excerpt from my new Sid story spin off, Save Me. Feel free to follow and fav if you like the excerpt. ~Brie**

You search for your shirt and wondered what the hell you got yourself into. You find your shirt and slip it on. Next was your shoes and wallet.

"I enjoyed last night. You were amazing." She bats her eyelashes and runs her soft fingers down the back of your neck. Considering you were so plastered you couldn't even remember what her moans sounded like it probably wasn't as memorable as she wanted it to be.

"Same." Your eyes scan the area for your wallet and it's nowhere to be seen. "Have you seen my wallet?"

She squeezes the wound on your arm. It was still a little painful. You wince and realize she definitely did that on purpose. This topless, beautiful woman definitely was trying to bribe you. You suddenly remember how much you hate drunk you for putting yourself in this situation.

"I don't know who you are but I'll have you know I'm a cop. I deal with bullshitters and crooks for a living. And you ma'am are as bullshit as they come. Pretty faces only tell lies." You grab her wrist, twist it then pinned her onto the ground.

Sure you had brute strength on your side but having her bare breasts pressed up against your chest was distracting and she knew it. She seductively wraps her smooth legs around your waist. You throb at the sudden closeness. This definitely was not a good idea for Sid, the Kid.

"Give me my wallet and phone so I can leave."

She smirks and the puckers her pink lips, "What's my name before I give you your precious wallet."

An ultimatum. Sid hated ultimatums. You sigh and hope to god that her face gives you a miraculous clue as to who she is. The name thought seemed like a dead mission. She certainly had told you but the whiskey kicked in far too early.

She bucks under you and the friction feels nice. Complete and utter brain fart.

"That's what I thought."

You release her and delivers a kick to the back of your shin jutting you forward. She delivers a stern kick to your stomach as you fall to the ground. She plants her whole body on your back by squatting with her cold feet right on your spine. She was a 130 pounds. Though you could bench press more his gunshot wounds still ached and had plenty of past injuries including back ones that had him a little rusty.

Not only was your arm burning and the pressure to your spine irritating you didn't believe in hitting women. Even if it happened to be a woman who you slept with but still didn't know.

"You're a cop, which is evident from your multiple stab and gunshot wounds. Besides your body looking like you're Batman by night, I peeped your badge. You're from Hillwood and you're going to take me there or I will scream rape Sidney."

"Can't say good morning first? Get off of my back before you paralyze me you crazy lady!"

She leans down to your ear and says softly, "You promise you'll help me if I let you go?"

"Yes. Just get off of me." You tell the truth. Obviously if mystery woman was stupid enough to sleep with him and then attack him she needed you.

You frown at the realization that your break was cut short and you now had to drive a crazy, topless woman across the state line to the place you don't want to be right now.


End file.
